MechWarrior: Witch Wars
by Xenolord
Summary: You are a new arrival to the Magi Mercenary Unit. It seems like a routine assignment, until a MechWarrior arrives, flying the flag of Clan Barrier Witch. T for language.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own either Puella Magi\Maho Shoujo Madoka Magica, nor BattleTech\MechWarrior.

Author's Note (Original): The King of Strange Crossovers returns with one no one's ever seen or porbably ever going to again. Based on a... very strange dream I had.

Author's Note (Redux): Okay, so I'm on chapter eight of this little thing, and upon reading through what I've already written, I realize how incredibly displeased I was with how it flowed. Lots of plot holes and shit, so in interest of your own sanity, and my own urge of perfectionism, I present to you the re-done MechWarrior: Witch Wars.

MechWarrior: Witch Wars

Prologue

In the waning months of 3058, with the major Clans in full retreat from the battered, but still very much standing Inner Sphere, the once-warring factions of the Inner Sphere launch a retaliatory strike against the Clan Smoke Jaguar World of Strana Mechti, decimating the stationed Smoke Jaguar forces there, and in effect, ending the Clan's attempt to claim the world of Terra for their own. With Clan Wolf, Clan Jade Falcon, and Clan Ghost Bear either crippled beyond their capacity for a return strike, or in full-scale retreat, the Inner Sphere is allowed an opportunity to rebuild.

However, war is one of the few constants in the dog-eat-dog politics of the Inner Sphere, and it is a profitable one. With the majority of the Great Houses managing to reconcile old wounds with one another enough to rebuild a shadow of the former Star League of old, a few splinter groups have continued Mercenary actions outside, and on the rare occasion, inside of Star League jurisdiction. This is the story of one such Mercenary Group.

-ComStar Mercenary Relations; Planet Outreach. July 23, 3059-

You step out of the Dropship with a grunt and a few creative words you know as a fact your mother didn't teach you, smelling the stagnant, recycled air of the ComStar Mercenary Relations hub, taking a look at what would prove to be your new home. A few of the other Tri-M graduates you've shared the two week flight with file past you without so much as a hint that you're even there. As you formulate in your head what you're going to do now that you're a full-fledge Mercenary, a mechanical droll tells you exactly how you're going to spend that time; at least the first few minutes of it. "All new arrives please register at the ComStar Terminal." The computer drones as the line begins to form on all four sides of the central pillar, a computer terminal on each side. Your eyes are instantly drawn to one side of the pillar with only three recruits trying to cram themselves onto the terminal all at once. You take up a position behind them, fold your hands patiently behind your back and wait for them to sort themselves out. It turns out this takes a solid five minutes before all three recruits are registered and placed on the waiting list for a unit. Stepping out of line, one of the recruits, a blond boy with gray eyes smiles to you.

"All yours." He drones, allowing you to step up to the console. Thanking him, you press the little button that reads 'New Pilot Registration' on the screen, two large, white text boxes appearing in the center, one reading 'NAME' while the other has 'TRI-M REFERENCE NUMBER' as a label. Pushing the first box, the 'name' box, you type your name with the provided keyboard as a little loading hour glass appears as you're searched. After a few seconds, the second box gets filled in with a serial number, and a few letters at the end.

A third word appears at the bottom of the console, displaying 'STATUS' in red. As you're about to pull away after it inevitably displays 'WAITING', you're shocked to see the 'WAITING' replaced very quickly with 'PLACED'. You continue to stare at the screen for a moment, pondering how exactly it is you got placed so quickly, when your quick placement goes noticed by everyone else that had gathered around you.

"Hey, Leon! Check this out! This'n got a placement assignment already!" Slowly, more and more people gather around you as the little loading hour glass appears once more, trying to think about where you'd do best. Before long, two small check boxes appear on the screen, words above reading 'VIABLE UNITS'. The first check box has the world ULTANOS written next to it. You'd heard stories about Ultanos from your two years at Tri-M. Ultanos was a top-tier Mercenary Company, some would argue the best the Inner Sphere had to offer. Their former leader and founder, Johnathen L. Ultan founded the Mercenary Unit in 3048, and after that he was an integral figure in galactic politics, even winning the Solaris VII Tournament a few years later. They say if it weren't for John Ultan and the Ultanos Mercenary Unit, the Inner Sphere would have lost when the Clans invaded.

"Ultanos!? They want you in ULTANOS!?" One of the boys behind you grabs your shoulder and gives you a little shake. "Ta~ke i~t! Come on, that's a chance of a fuckin' life time! Take Ultanos!" Not wanting to squander whatever chances you might have, you look at the other check box. This one had 'MAGI' written next to it. You stare at the second check box for a moment, your finger hovering over it.

"Magi?" One of the girls to your left ask, staring at the name. "I... don't think I've heard of that unit."

"Shit, Magi's pretty damn good too." Another girl speaks. "You know that record of the Gauntlet back at Tri-M? Magi's leader set it. She's some kind of BattleMech super freak, or something. They say she was a total clutz before her last exam, where she just blew everyone out of the water. Figuratively. Every member of the Magi Unit, as small a unit as it is, is supposed to be primo stuff, like real good pilots."

"Shit... Damn, Feddie, how'd you get offers from two of the best Mercenary Units in the biz?" You turn to one of the boys to your right and ask him where he thinks you should go. He stares at you for a while before nodding.

"If'n you want my honest opinion. Magi."

"Magi? Nah, don't listen to him. Magi may be good, but they're small. No one hires Magi anymore. Ultanos is where you want to go."

"Pbth." The boy on your right continues. "Don't listen to HER. Ultanos is large, sure, but the odds of you getting any missions are slim. Magi's small. If they get a contract, chances are ALL of you are going. Guaranteed." You look back over your choices before your finger finds a check box. Magi. "There ya go." He slaps your shoulder and smiles. "Maybe we'll see each other on the flip side, huh?" The group breaks off to discuss your expedited placement, their voices mixing with one another into a massive crescendo before a single female voice, given prominence with a stern clearing of her throat that everyone silences. Slowly, a singular figure pushes her way past the gaggle of enthralled recruits, eventually stopping before you. She stares at you with hard violet eyes, her long raven hair held in place by a simple navy blue hair band, her clothes look pristine, a strange uniform unlike any neural interfacing suit you've ever seen before, (Not to mention vastly different from off-duty clothes) looking more like a school uniform. The soft peach of the blouse's fabric reflects a bit of the low light off of it, and what isn't reflected by her blouse is absorbed by the dark tartan pattern of the skirt, her long, pale legs covered in long black socks, complete with Japanese-designed indoor shoes. She continues to stare for a moment before turning to the accrued crowed.

"Well. Don't you kids have somewhere to go? Like to bed?" It was typical for recruits to find an apartment during their waiting period, most forced to bunk two to three in a room. The group muttered something that sounded like a mixed muddle of acknowledgments and dispersed slowly. "So you're this hot shot MechWarrior I keep hearing about? You gave Madoka a run for her money on the Gauntlet test, which is no small feat." She doesn't smile as she talks, simply keeps staring at you with those accusing eyes, like she hates you for some reason. "Well, let's not keep the others waiting. The rest of the unit has been pretty excited about meeting you. Now that I have, I can't say I'm terribly impressed." You're about to protest, but you keep your mouth shut deciding it's probably not the best plan to anger someone who looks like they'd kill their own grandmother given the proper reason. You settle on letting her know that you plan on proving to her that you're worth the trouble, a response which seems to please her. "You know what they say about pictures, kid. Make sure you're wasting more enemy 'Mechs then you are your breath." She turns curtly on her heels and looks lazily over her shoulder to you. "Come on, kid. Follow me." She starts to walk towards a hall squeezed between an office door and the boarding dock you exited from. You follow her at a distance, keeping no less then five feet between yourself and your escort, watching her from behind as she moves.

Her uniform is strange, that's for sure. Most Mercenaries choose a more rugged look for their off-duty uniforms, leather or maybe torn clothes, but her? Her school uniform swayed a bit as she moved, the gentle undulations of her rear as she moved definitely nothing like a Mercenary. Everything about her screamed that she was just an ordinary, eighteen year old girl. She moved so fluidly, each and every motion that of a well-choreographed ballet, her shoes making very little noise as they make their way across the steel floor. She stops before a tram station, pressing a button on the side. She doesn't face you as she waits for the tram to arrive, the track-bound transit box arriving a few seconds later, the door slides open with a cheery ding. She steps in and you follow her, the woman taking the far seat, you sitting across from her. She drapes one arm lazily across the seat beside her as you fold your hands in your lap.

As your escort looks left, you allow your eyes to wander across her. She definitely seems young, maybe eighteen as your previous guess, but she could also be about twenty one. She looks to be in the final stages of maturity into a woman, her fairly small breasts hidden well beneath the peach blouse... "See something you like, rookie?" She asks, her eyes having fallen on you as you were studying her. You shake your head and dislodge your previous thoughts, apologizing for your wandering eyes. "It's alright. Don't worry too much about it." She look past you to the dropships leaving through the window behind you. "It's good to know this old woman is still attractive." Her words showing no love or affection behind them, but your feeling that she hates you only grows. You look down at your lap, the ragged jeans and torn shirt a signal to all exactly how rough the trip over here was. You can't exactly say you smell particularly nice either, you could use a shower and a change of clothes.

Feeling the tram slow to a stop, the woman in front of you stands and walks to the door, her motions unswayed by the rapid deceleration of the tram. As it stops, the door opens with a ding, a computerized voice chiming in chorus. "Living Area" You stand with her and, once again, follow her out, keeping your mouth closed for the duration, as not to give her anymore reason to hate you.

"Come on. Don't fall behind." She orders curtly. You fall in and keep pace with her as she leads you pass two turns and down a long hallway, lined with doors about seven feet apart. Forty or so down the line, she finally stops before one and knocks.

"Come on in, it's open." A soft female voice answers, you escort doing as instructed, twisting the handle to push the light metal door open. On the other side are three younger-looking girls, probably all about the same age as your emotionless escort, all wearing similar school-uniform type clothes. "Ah, Homura. I see you managed to find our new recruit quite fine."

"I did. I brought her here like you wanted. Can I go now?" Your escort, Homura you guess her name was, flicks some of her hair with her left hand and motions to leave.

"Why would you want to leave so soon? I just put the kettle on for some tea, and the cake will be ready momentarily... You know how much you love my cake." Homura seems unconvinced by the blond woman's attempts to sway her decision, the woman simply shaking her head.

"I do... but I think for now I'll decline. Present company and all." The other women, a red head and a blue-haired one look at each other, then to the blond, who simply smiles and bows.

"Very well then, Homura. There will be left overs when you change your mind." Homura doesn't return her bow, but just leaves without much of an answer. The blond woman gives a great sigh after the door shuts, quickly hiding it behind a smile and a welcoming gesture. "Well, let's not let Homura's display of inhospitality jade your opinion of our humble little family, come have a seat." She offers you inside, a welcoming look of civility about her face. Taking a seat from across the red head and the blue-haired woman you nod and thank her, asking if it was anything you did. "Not likely, no." She responds simply as she drops a metal mesh ball into a tea pot. "Homura's... a bit of an interesting person. Don't get me wrong, once she opens up to you, she's a good girl, but it's the 'opening up' part that's tricky. I hope she didn't give you the wrong vibe." You debate whether or not you should tell her your feelings of her hating you, and decide against it. "Oh, where are my manners?" She gives another bow, continuing to speak when she rights herself. "My name is Mami Tomoe, second-in-command in the Magi Mercenary Unit." She offers you her hand as you introduce yourself to her. "Pretty name." Taking the pot of water from the small stove, she pours a small amount of the liquid into small, porcelain tea cups before you and the other two women, plus a cup you assume to be her own.

"Hey, nice to meet you, kid." The red head speaks, reaching across the table to shake your hand. "Name's Kyouko." She has a certain fire in her eyes, the look of a brave, possibly arrogant 'MechWarrior. "Kyouko Sakura, but you can just call me Kyouko. Grumpy Guss there didn't say anything bad to you, did she? Homura's got a bit of a grating personality." The blue haired woman beside Kyouko gives you a little nod, offering you her hand as well.

"My name is Sayaka Miki. Pleasure." She continues to her tea as Mami takes a cake from the small refrigerator under her counter, placing on the table.

"You'll meet our leader in a moment, she's picking a starter 'Mech out for you." You nod to her and thank her, taking a sip from the tea. It doesn't settle with you at first, the bitter taste more then a little change from what you're used to. Back at Tri-M, you never really drank tea or coffee much, but if she's offering, you're not one to refuse.

"Don't take this the wrong way, kid, but you smell like sweat and lost dreams... Hey, Mami? Would you mind if she borrowed your shower?" Mami looks you over and gives you a nod.

"Yes... I do hate to beat a dead horse, but you do smell like you could use a hot shower. Sure, be my guest." She motions you to a small door just on the other side of her bed. Reaching into a cardboard box, she takes out a peach blouse and tartan skirt, a pair of socks and shoes sitting on top. "This may be more of a formality, but members of the Magi Mercenary Unit, official or otherwise, are required to wear this, by the way." She hands you the uniform which you take with a smile and a thanks. "Don't mention it. Just make sure you're wearing it when you get out of the shower, and... do yourself a favor, and throw what you're wearing away. You look like a homeless bum." You feel yourself blush at the notion, not really wanting to admit how right she was.

Carrying the uniform into the shower, you place them upon the counter and begin to undress, ready to enjoy your first real shower in a good long time. The water is a good temperature, not too hot, nor too cold, and as it cascades down your back, you feel the two weeks you've sat and stewed in your own sweat in a hot, unairconditioned Dropship start to melt down the drain. Reaching down, you borrow her bottle of bodywash and help the water wash away your fatigue, rubbing the sweet-scented gel over your body and into your hair (Despite the fact you're pretty sure it's not supposed to be used in your hair. You really don't care.), letting the Rainfall shower head wash it away.

You finish your shower after a few minutes and feel much more refreshed. Finishing drying your hair, you begin to pull the package of your uniform apart, separating the shoes and socks from the blouse and skirt, a small box of underwear hidden inside. Oh great... uniform-grade underwear... Feeling a little warm at your cheek, you crack the box open and start to dress, the white garments coming off as more of a luxury to you then you're used to. After finishing with that detail, you pull the peach-colored blouse over your head and struggle to put your arms through the long sleeves, eventually fighting it enough to smooth it out over your chest and stomach. It looks ridiculous on you, but you figure with enough wear, you'll get used to the look. Stepping into the skirt, you pull it up around your waist and situate the blouse over the top, just like Mami and Homura wore it, hoping you got it right. Taking a seat on the toilet lid, you roll the socks over your legs, pulling them all the way up to your knees and slip your feet into the shoes, wiggling your toes a little. This... all feels more like you're getting ready for school, not about to jump into a fifty ton killing machine, and make today a very bad day for a whole lot of faceless people. With your shoes clacking cutely on the tile, you step out of the bathroom to the stares of everyone assembled.

"There's our newbie!" Kyouko smiles and stands from her seat, looking you over. She, along with Sayaka, is wearing the same uniform as you, the girl putting her hands on your shoulder to look you over. With an awkward smile, you kindly ask if there's a male version of this uniform, citing you're not much of a skirt person. Kyouko laughs a little at your question and shakes her head.

"Nah. Sorry, only one." She smooths the blouse over your sides and gives your hair a little tousle. "Besides, you look so cute in that! Fits you." Pulling you back to the table she sits you back at your seat and takes hers next to Sayaka. "Do you like tea, by the way? Your face says you don't." You confess it's not your favorite, but it does have a nice, refreshing taste about it. "That's Mami's tea! It's the real reason Jake associates with us!" Her voice becomes a whisper. "It's the tea! He's trying to steal the recipe from her!"

"Oh, Kyouko. Knock it off." A small beep comes from a small console above the bed, Mami standing to answer it. Pushing a button, the face of a young, pink-haired girl appearing on the screen. "Oh, Madoka. Is there something you need?" She nods a little and smiles to her friend.

"Yes, actually, I need your professional opinion on some things before the kid gets here..."

"Little late for that, Madoka." She looks over to you as you give a wave to the woman on the screen. "She arrived about ten minutes ago. Threw her in the shower, got her dressed, and she is ready to meet you." The woman smiles at you through the screen.

"Hey, kid, come here." She summons you to the screen. Getting to your feet, you hustle over and salute to her. She laughs at your display and shakes her head. "No, no, no. No need for that, you're not a full member of our unit yet, there's no need to salute me yet. Listen, due to some recent... financial problems, we are unable to provide anything more then a Commando 'Mech for your first contract. It's not much, I know, but I picked it up from Ultanos pretty cheap." You tell her it's alright, and a 'Mech is a 'Mech, regardless of how heavy it was. This response seems to please her as she smiles. "That's what I like to see. A MechWarrior who knows the value of even the smallest of 'Mechs. I think you'll fit in just find here, kiddo." She turns to Mami and continues. "Anyway, Mami. Quistis just got us hooked up with a couple of contracts on Zosma, and since we've got six people now, we can knock out all three in one fell swoop. Once you guys are done with your little tea party, head over to the _Mitakihara_ and I'll fill you in on the details. Goddess out." The screen clicks off as Madoka's visage vanishes, Mami turning to you with a little smile.

"That was our Mercenary Commander, Madoka. She's a pretty good judge of character, so if she's throwing you into combat so soon... you must have impressed her. Come on, I'll show you to the Magi's 'Mech Bay. Sayaka? Kyouko? Are you coming with us?" Sayaka gives a curt nod as Kyouko stands, swallowing what's left in her cup in one go, her cheeks puffing up like a squirrel as she nods. "Kyouko... why do you do that?"

"Fucking love your tea..." Kyouko responds following Sayaka over to Mami as she leads you and the other two girls out. You look like a line of school kids walking to their next class as you follow the long hallway down about another fifteen or so rooms before turning a corner to another tram.

"Now..." Mami speaks to you as she stops. "The tram you arrived here in at first can also bring you to the 'Mech Bays, but this one's closer for us..." She speaks as she nods, confirming her words. You acknowledge her and continue following as she starts walking again. She pushes the little button next to the tram door as you line up behind her, Kyouko and Sayaka behind you, in that order. With another cheery ding, the door opens allowing the four of you in. You and Mami find chairs next to each other as Kyouko and Sayaka take the adjacent seats, Kyouko's arm lying across the back of Sayaka's chair.

"Kyouko... knock it off..." Sayaka pouts, although you get the feeling it was more for show then her being serious.

"What? I thought you liked it when I did that?"

"Not..." She gives Kyouko a light push. "Not when there's a new person around... You remember the last one..."

"Hey!" Kyouko turns to you, drawing your attention to her. "You're not a prude are you? You're not one of those 'Public Displays of Affection are evil' people, are you?" You shake your head and tell her it doesn't bother you one bit. Kyouko smiles and turns back to Sayaka. "See? The kid's fine with it."

"That's not what I mean, Kyouko, and you know it..." Although she gives one last protest, she gives up, allowing Kyouko her way. You allow yourself a little laugh at the two, obviously madly in love, but the blue-haired Sayaka just seems so... shut-in. You're not sure if she's always like this, or if it's because you're in the same tram as her, but you can definitely see a little blush cross her pale cheeks. Kyouko settles her arm around Sayaka's shoulder as the train travels along it's track. Mami's the next to speak.

"I'm so glad we finally have a sixth member. We've been a unit for about five years now, and it's just been us five." Her amber eyes seem to study you past what she can see with them... you almost feel as though she's staring into your very soul and testing your mettle. You return her glare with a smile and a nod, a few words about how you'll not disappoint. "Something tells me, newbie... that I don't have to worry about you disappointing us." Her hair, styled into two short drill-like additions off her side of her head, it looked as though she was a lot younger then she looked, maybe fifteen or so, but her face spoke volumes of her experience. "I imagine Madoka will have questions for you when you get there... just understand she's covering her bases, alright?" You nod and smile, allowing the train to slow to a stop.

"'Mech Bay Eighteen." The cheery female voice speaks as a ding proceeds the door opening. There was a small hallway which lead to a small set of double-doors, the sounds of welders and other mechanical things coming through the door. Mami's the first out of the tram, with you in tow and Sayaka and Kyouko behind you. She opens the door and motions you forward. Stepping onto the metal grate that was the cat walk above the 'Mech Bay, you place both hands on the railing and look down. This is one of the many 'Mech Bays across Outreach, the whole planet basically one big military installation. It was one of the first planets colonized after the great Exodus from Earth, and thus the most developed.

"What do you think, hm? Quite a set up we've got here." You nod, telling Mami this is quite a display, giving that the 'Mech Bays they had back in Tri-M were only designed to hold half a dozen 'Mechs at most, you find yourself shocked one of this size exists. "All of these 'Mechs are ours." Mami takes a place next to you, watching the workings of the 'Mech Bay with a careful, calm gaze.

"Mami-san!" A voice calls from within, the little soft voice echoing off the cold metal of the 'Mech Bay. "Down here!" Mami looks down, your own eyes following hers, as your gaze falls upon the distant visage of the girl from the screen earlier. Mami sets a hand gently on your shoulder, motioning you to a set of stairs a few feet away from you. Your small group scales the stairs slowly, your shoes clacking loudly against the metal. You take another look at your group, you and the three girls dressed in light pink blouses looked so out of place against all the metal and ordinance. You eventually reach the floor as the figure appears before you again, her pink hair bouncing as she comes to a similar stop.

"Hello, there." She smiles, holding a hand out to you. With a smile and nod, you take her hand and give it a light shake. "My name is Madoka Kaname, leader of the Magi Mercenary Unit. It's a pleasure to meet you!" She retrieves a clip board from behind her and looks it over. "I've got your record here, and let me tell you... I'm impressed. Your name is..." You hear her run your name off, and you nod to confirm. "It says here you've got a very strange birth defect... what is Self-Auditory Amnesia, exactly?" You explain to her that, as far as you have heard, it's a very rare defect in which a person has no sense of self. They know about what happens or what they say, but when asked to recall exactly what they did or said, they're unable to do so. "You remember your training, though, right? You're no different in the cockpit then anyone without it, correct?" You nod and confirm this to be true, a response that pleases her. "Excellent! That's what I wanted to hear. Now, as I said earlier, all I've got is a Commando, but you'll have plenty of backup. Now, we've got three contracts on Zosma that we're taking... and I think you and Tomoe-san would be best suited to team up... I'll put Miki-san and Sakura-san together because Sakura-san will cry if I don't, and Tomoe-san and I will be teamed for another." Your face contorts into a mess as you hear this. "Oh, don't you worry one bit. Akemi-san is a wonderful pilot. You'll be safe in her hands." Almost as if on cue.

"Are you sure that's such a good idea, Madoka? Homura was... displeasant to the kid when they first met..." Madoka nodded, happy with her response.

"Akemi-san's just abrasive. There's no need to worry. She's a fine pilot." Madoka put a little hand on your shoulder, and lead you towards one 'Mech Bay slot, a small, twenty-five ton Commando sitting there, in the last moments of repairs. "This Commando should be ready to go by the time we get you seated and ready." You watch as an engineer rolls a ladder towards the Commando and locks it in place, nudging you up it with his head. "Alright, Magi, to your 'Mechs." Everyone disperses and starts to climb the ladders to their 'Mechs, you slowly ascending the ladder to the Commando. Sitting in the cockpit, you close the door behind you, a large bolt sliding visibly in place as the cockpit locks and pressurizes. With a flick of the 'Mechs switches, the lumbering BattleMech powers up.

"Everyone hear me alright?" Your radio crackles, Madoka's cute, petite face appearing in your center MFD.

"I hear you, loud and clear, Commander." You answer, Madoka smiling on the other side.

"Good!"

"This is Big Sister..." Mami's voice intrudes. "I hear you, Goddess."

"Champion here. You're signal's coming in strong." Sayaka answers as Kyouko's face appears in your MFD.

"Crimson Fury here. My radio's still cutting off every eighth word, but I'll live."

"Stop Watch, Ready." Another voice answers.

"Akemi-san!" Madoka smiles. "How long have you been here?"

"Not long." The girl answers, her face coming over the MFD. "I see _you're_ still here... can't say that's good."

"Homura... please. Be nice to our newcomer." You watch as Homura's eyes harden towards you once more, almost as if she's trying to kill you with laser eyes.

"Why?" She asks plainly. "Listen. Don't talk to me. I don't like you, and you can't change the fact. Just... don't talk to me." You give a slow nod to her 'request' if you want to call it that. "Good." She answers, her face disappearing off your MFD. As you stare in disbelief at what just occurred, you feel that sensation you had when you first met her grow... you just... can't help but get the feeling she hates you for some reason... You manipulate your radio and ring Mami, the girl being the most outgoing and friendly towards you.

"Uhm... M-Mami?" You ask, careful how you word your question.

"Mmm?" She asks, her face a sea of calm.

"Did I... do something wrong?"

"No no. I don't know what Homura's problem is but... I wouldn't worry too too much about it. She's a little abrasive but... I'm sure she'll open up to you in time." You watch a 'Mech a slight bit larger then yours clatter out of the slot next to you, the 'Mech (which you recognize as a Hollander-IIC painted all yellow) looks at you with it's deadened eyes. Your eyes scan the surface of the 'Mech, the Hollander far enough away from you so it's gun's not stabbing your cockpit out. Speaking of it's shoulder cannon, you note the strangest sight upon the end of the cannon, a large (large by human standards, fairly small by BattleMech standards) yellow ribbon tied into a bow upon the end of the gun. "Are you alright?" She askes.

"Is... that you, Mami? In the Hollander?" Her face lights up again.

"Oh, my, yes! I apologize, we didn't tell you who's who!" She backs the 'Mech out of your way as one massive hand motions you forward. Careful not to slam into Mami's Hollander, you slowly bring the Commando out of the slot, and turn to face the mass of 'Mechs ready to leave the 'Mech Bay. "Goddess, we didn't put names and faces to 'Mechs again."

"Oh!" Madoka, who you assume to be Goddess, comes over your radio, her chipper visage appearing in your central MFD. "I am so sorry about that!" You watch as a sixty-five ton Catapult 'Mech turns to face you; painted in a slightly garish pink color, little (again, by BattleMech standards) red bows tied around the actuators of her Catapult's 'arms', making the 'Mech look like a little girl with pigtails... strangely matching her own hairstyle. The Catapult's torso pivots down, almost as if it's bowing to you. "I'm in the Catapult here, the _Mahou Shoujo_. I'm pretty noticeable, as you might have noticed."

You observe that her 'Mech is awfully pink, reading the cute bubble-script just under the cockpit, the words reading '_Mahou Shoujo_', the 'Mech's name. Madoka gives a little titter at your comment on her 'Mech's paint scheme.

"I like pink. It's a soothing color." She gives a little shrug as her 'Mech turns towards the open 'Mech Bay door, slowly walking out. Engulfing the entire left side of your screen comes a large, red BattleMech. It takes you a moment to run the basic profile of the 'Mech through your head to get an idea of what it was. Grim Reaper. Yea, now you recognize that distinct profile as a Grim Reaper 'Mech. You look it over, words morphing into your vision just under the distrubing-looking face of the 'Mech, reading '_MEGAHORN_'.

"Man, you're like a little fly from up here!" Kyouko's voice crackles over your radio, the face of the red-head appearing in your MFD, a small pretzel stick jutting out of her mouth. Retracting the pretzel into her mouth, she crunches it down and swallows it.

"Sakura-san, are you _eating_ in your cockpit _again_?" Kyouko paused for a moment, very slowly and quietly finishing chewing before answer.

"N-no... of course not... that was just my... uh... radio crackling a little. You know it's on the fritz." Mami's face replaced hers, her calm demeanor settling your nerves that have been active since you first arrived.

"That's awfully funny, Kyouko. That 'radio crackle' sounded _vaguely _similar to a pretzel to me."

"Shut up your face." Kyouko responded.

"I think you hit a nerve, Mami!" Sayaka responded, giggling.

"You're wearing lace underpants!" Kyouko rebuttled instantly, Sayaka's laugh cutting off instantly.

"K-Kyouko! Why'd you go and _tell them that_?!" Kyouko's face grinning in your MFD.

"It quiets you down." Kyouko responded, a small red box appearing in her hand as she puts another pretzel stick in her mouth. The Grim Reaper 'Mech backs out of your view and turns, starting to walk out of the 'Mech Bay. You're about to walk out yourself, when a wide 'Mech that looks like a bastard child of a Clan Vulture and a Catapult appears, startling you in your seat. Staring at it for a moment, you vaguely recognize the strange 'Mech as a Cauldron Borne, a Clan 'Mech of strange design. It's painted in an almost musical motif, which seems to give it an even stranger profile, small words under the cockpit reading 'Sonata VII'.

"Oh, man, Kyouko was right! You ARE like a little fly!" Sayaka giggles over your radio, the Cauldron Borne pitching it's torso down a little, to give it the feel of it trying to bow. "Hey, it's me, Sayaka... I'm in this... P.O.S..."

"It's not a piece of shit." Kyouko responded, scoffing a bit. "That's why it's in the repair dock more then the rest of us. You've got no faith in your 'Mech." The Cauldron Borne slowly starts to work it's way out and you, finally, managed to pull your 'Mech out of the hanger dock, the large steel door at the other end of the 'Mech Bay beginning to slowly open, the chilly spring air flowing inside as it did.

"_Mitikihara _to Magi Mercenary Unit. We are awaiting you on Pad Six."

"Thank you, Hitomi." Madoka answered the young female voice that accosted our radios. "Alright, we'll be going to Zosma for this mission. We've got about 3 contracts on Zosma, so we're gonna break up into three groups for this. Tomoe-san and I will take one, Miki-san and Sakura-san will take another, and Akemi-san will take our newcomer for a third."

"No." Came Homura's voice, as solid and stiff as ever. You sigh and shake your head disappointed. You knew this was going to happen.

"Akemi-san..." Madoka continued at the group lumbered out of the 'Mech Bay. "Come on... I need someone who can-"

"_No._" Her voice continued.

"Homura..."

"Don't worry about it, Madoka..." Mami cut in with a smile. "I'll take the kid. Homura can go with you." Madoka's voice comes over the MFD, a frown evident on her face, but she seems to agree.

"Thank you for resolving that, Tomoe-san. I'll find a way to make it up to you."

"Oh, don't worry about it." The Catapult was the first to climb onto the Dropship, followed by a smaller 'Mech (Clan 'Mech, you think) then Mami, Kyouko and Sayaka, then finally you right behind.

"Now, I know a few of you haven't been to Zosma yet, so I'll go ahead and give you the run down. It's only a jump away, so we should be able to clear this mission pretty fast. We should be back in Outreach around the thirtieth of the month." Madoka explains gently, her 'Mech backing into one of the holds.

"Dropship _Mitikihara_, this is the Jumpship _Barricade_. Jake's called ahead, and given you the okay to dock."

"Thank you, Jumpship _Barricade._ We should be docking in a few moments. Thank you again for allowing us to birth.

Inner Sphere Dropships couldn't make an FTL jump by themselves, and must rely on larger, more powerful ships called Jumpships. The average FTL jump took about twenty minutes to make... and seven days to recharge the engines. Of course, only being able to make jumps at sixty light years means that some trips take more then one jump. This made some contracts more expensive for travel and food fees.

"Is our contracts paying for expenses?"

"All three say the Combine will pay for all reasonable ammunition expenses. Which means don't dump your missiles, Sayaka."

"Who me? I don't do that. Must be thinking of someone else..." Sayaka answered. You have a hard time trying to decide if she was joking or being serious. You can hear Mami give a cute little laugh over the radio as everyone gets situated in their docking area. You push a few buttons on the 'Mech's console, the small Light 'Mech shutting down with a dull hum. Somehow, you're relieved that Mami will be chaperoning you for your first mission, instead of Homura. Something about that girl just rubs you all the wrong kind of ways. You settle down in the cockpit of your 'Mech and hunker down as the _Mitakihara_ docks rather smoothly with the _Barricade_. You can tell that the pilot of this dropship has made similar dockings several times before. The trip to Zosma shouldn't be too long of a trip there... the return trip would be where it would be brutal.


	2. Chapter One

One: "First Blood"

You're jarred awake by a sudden jerk that rocks your entire 'Mech. Instinct takes over as your hands fly across the 'Mech's power-up sequence, the computer running over the obligatory list of systems that are now getting power. "Oh... you're awake." Comes a smooth voice over your radio, Mami's cute little twin drills appearing in your center MFD. You apologize for snoozing in, which only makes Mami laugh a little more "Don't worry about it. The others have already dropped, I was just waiting for you to wake before we began our own mission." Slapping yourself awake, you slowly pull out of the docking section you've backed into and look out the over the sandy plains of Zosma. "Our area of operation today is going to be a small city just a kilometer from here. While Goddess and the others are out on their own missions, you and I are going to be taking care of a little situation that's broken out amongst the Loyalist and Separatist Parties..." She pauses for a moment as the Hollander lumbers out of the Dropship, you in tow.

"About six months ago, there was a vote whether or not Zosma should remain in control of the Draconis Combine, or if it should become it's own power. The vote came back a dead heat, and the recount process has been slow to say the least. The group that want Zosma to separate, the Separatists, started protesting... the protests turned into riots, which inevitably turned into a full-blow terrorist action. Things remained fairly manageable by local police until the Separatists decided to take over one of the buildings in the city; a bank. The DC have called this a 'blatant terrorist attack', and have called us in to quell the uprising. Now, I'm sure you don't care about details or politics, so all you have to know is you and I both walk away with a cool quarter of a million C-Bills..." You notice that her 'Mech's shoulders have the Draconis Combine logo painted upon them, and you can only guess that yours do as well. Mami continues undeterred by your mental reverie. "...provided we can take care of this little bank issue. The 'terrorists' have taken control of the Inner Sphere Bank Building, at the far edge of the city. Initial recon by DC soldiers have reported that they're holed up on floors three, eight and ten... Those three floors are to be our targets. We walk away with an additional hundred thousand each if we can avoid destroying any other floors then those three." You nod a little and confirm that you understand the instructions. "That's not to say those'll be the only targets we'll have. DC Recon indicates that the Separatists might have a 'Mech or two, just to make the DC realize that they mean business... we're talking about a Commando, or maybe an Assassin or two, nothing the pair of us can't handle." Again, you nod.

"Don't feel bad about opening fire on anyone who takes a shot at you, alright? This isn't Tri-M anymore, they will _kill_ you and not feel bad about it. At the end of the day, kiddo, you're just a number on a long line of numbers." Another nod from you brightens the smile on Mami's face. "Mmm, you are a chipper one, aren't you? Very well, we'll see if you're all talk, or if you do have the skills to back up your record." You and Mami are about a half kilometer away from the city when your radio blares a very ominous warning.

"Unknown 'Mechs, you are entering a Free Zosma Democracy area. Turn around, or we will be forced to open fire and destroy you." His voice is shaky, almost like he's being forced to speak these words. You defer to Mami to make her retort as you are, of course, on your trial run.

"FZD, this is Mami Tomoe of the Magi Mercenary Unit. My associate and I are here to quell this little terrorist action of yours. I will give you one; and only one, warning before we open fire. Shut down your 'Mechs, lay down your arms and return to your homes, or you will be fired upon."

"You would fire upon democracy!? Upon FREEDOM!? Truly, you Mercenaries have no honor."

"We only have one honor system here, that's money. So unless you plan on bribing us, shut down your 'Mechs and return to your homes, or prepare to be fired upon."

"No more warnings, Mercenaries! There's only two of them. Open fire!" Mami groans almost inaudibly, rolling her eyes a bit.

"Why do they always pick the hard way? Oh well. Did I mention we get a twenty-five thousand C-Bill bounty per kill? I might have. Safety off, kiddo, don't be afraid to fire." Her head goes down to her control panel and begins to push some buttons. "I don't know if I've told you this or not, kid, but there's a reason Goddess and I usually go together..." You continue to inquire why that is. "Because both of us can usually out-range most 'Mechs; destroying them before they get to us... I'll try to pick off as many as I can, but if they get too close, I need you to cover me." You confirm, which makes her smile again. "So cute when you nod..." A slight, unknown blush creeps across your cheeks as she says this. The pair of you continue to close in on the city and, before long, you see two little red blips appear on your radar. You sound off to Mami that you've got two contacts, and she nods. "Aye, I've got 'em too. One's a Cicada, and the other appears to be a – eesh... Salamander..." She pauses for a moment. "Ignore the Salamander, kid, that thing'll tear you to shreds. Focus-fire on the Cicada, then give me a hand with the Salamander... if he lives long enough." Hunkering down, you prepare for combat. You watch as a blue ball of electrical plasma streaks to your right, slamming into the Salamander. That seemed to have gotten the Salamander's attention, the heavier 'Mech turning to face Mami.

"It's just you and me, kid." Another voice comes over your radio, the Cicada pilot if you're to take a guess. You smile silently behind the cockpit of the Commando and target him. He seems to have a damaged left leg... maybe these terrorists haven't the means or manpower to maintain their 'Mechs... Regardless, you decide to use this to your advantage, cycling your 'Mech's targeting computer to it's left leg, you cycle to the SRM 4 in your left torso. It's not going to do a lot, but it might do enough damage to cripple it. You see a few red laser blasts streak across your cockpit and go wide... seems as though the Cicada's shooting at you. The green redicle in the center of your HUD flashes red, and your finger twitches, the tell-tale click of warheads priming precedes a volley of four short-ranged missiles leaving the tubes in your left torso.

The Cicada managed to dodge half of your missile volley, two missiles going wide as the other two strike the wounded leg. You watch the 'Mech visibly reel from the hit, it's right leg attempting to compensate for the loss. "Dammit! I thought you said our 'Mechs were fixed! That little fucker Mercenary just staggered me!"

"I thought they WERE fixed!" You hear the voice from before respond. Staying collected, you fire a triple burst from your three Medium Lasers, one misses while the other two connect with the wounded leg. There was a solid advantage in being a mercenary over a low-life terrorist. The second laser blast seems to have had a serious effect on the Cicada, the lighter 'Mech starting to turn away from you.

"God dammit... I can't fight like this! I don't believe in this enough to die for it!" You watch the top of the Cicada explode, a long trail of smoke rocketing towards the sky. He ejected.

"I hate to be a bother, dear... but would you kindly give me a hand with the Salamander?" Over her question, you hear the blatant siren indicating a critical hit. Turning your 'Mech around, you quickly cycle targets to the Salamander. Immediately, you can see the damage Mami's done to it, a generous heaping of ass-kicking applied to various parts of it's body. Throttling forward, you race to Mami's aid. Thankfully, you weren't too far away from the combat to be of use. You address the Salamander by dropping four SRMs into it's back, followed by a generous heaping of laser fire. Dozens of small laser bolts pepper the back of the Salamander as it locks onto Mami, a volley of fifteen long-range missiles leave one of it's arms. You watch as Mami fires a PPC blast down the center of the missiles, managing to detonate about twelve to thirteen of them, the remaining stragglers slamming into her torso.

"God dammit, you little slut! Stop doing that!" It was clear that Mami's tactics were starting to wear on the 'MechWarrior. "And you stop shooting me in the back!" You respond with a simple one-word response in the negative and continue to do so. "God damn Mercenaries! Why don't you fight fair?"

"Darling, didn't you learn anything in terrorist school?" Comes Mami's sarcastic and slightly bitchy response. "Mercenaries _never_ fight fair." He begins to bring his 'Mech around to fire upon you, but a single PPC blast to the side causes him to re-target Mami. "No, darling. Shoot at me, now."

"Why won't you just fucking die!?" Mami chuckled at this.

"What kind of Senpai would I be if I died in front of my Kouhai?" The little hat on her head shifts as she cocks her head. "But enough out of you." The end of her Hollander's shoulder cannon glows a brilliant ice-blue as something charges. "Tell me, kid." She talks to you. "Do you know how to say 'last shot' in italian?" You shake your head, which brings a smile to her blonde face. "It's 'Tiro Finale'." Upon these words, the end of her cannon belches a shotgunned spread of three PPC blasts into the Salamander, shredding a massive hole in it's armor, breaching the reactor. The damaged left arm erupts into a dancing display of yellow and orange as flames ignite the missiles inside. The explosion spreads to it's torso before finally swallowing the cockpit whole. The pilot's last few words are cut out by static as the 'Mech falls on it's back from the force.

Mami still smiles as the 'Mech gives one last explosion before it finally goes quiet. Your eyes dart from the exploded Salamander to Mami's Hollander, it's left leg and right arm sparking, her leg a little limp. You debate whether or not to bring the subject up. "Would you do me a favor, please?" Mami speaks. "The bank building still has those floors we need to destroy... would you please correct that for me? This gun on my shoulder isn't very friendly towards navigating buildings."

Bullshit, you think. You're damaged and you don't want to admit it. Nontheless, you nod and turn towards the city, the main street leading into it's heart your access point. As you begin to enter the city, you bring up the damaged question to Mami. "Damaged?" She asks with a little chuckle. "Oh, no no." She continues. "I'm quite fine, thank you very much." You decide to drop it, because at this stage continuing to pry might not be within your best interest. Mami is an experienced 'MechWarrior, and knows when she's got too much damage. Besides, it's probably just a minor wound.

The Combine was nice enough to upload the location of the bank into your HUD, so you could find your way. You find it difficult to navigate the city without dealing excess damage to the surrounding buildings, neon signs and giant billboards take up most of the airspace in the city, making travel difficult. Turning around the corner of a particularly large building, you see your target, most of the ten floors devoid of any light, save for the exception of floors three, eight and ten... your targets. Looking at the ground, you see an array of people running into the building, probably to report that there's a 'Mech on the grounds. Just as this thought enters your head, windows on the eighth floor explode, as soldiers (at least you think they're soldiers... it's hard to tell with them being so small) begin to fire upon you.

_Chink pink bing patah..._ Bullets begin to ricochet off your 'Mech's armor as they fire, their tiny machine guns doing no damage to your armor. You almost feel bad for the poor sods, but then realize that that kind of feeling is unbecoming of a Mercenary. With a pull of your finger, the SRM launcher in your torso fires four more missiles into the eighth floor, the missiles streaking into the open windows and explode, sending glass, steel and body parts raining down on to the ground below.

"Objective: Destroy Eighth Floor of the Inner Sphere Bank Building – Complete." Your mission computer tells you as you pan your 'Mech down to look at the third floor. Firing a few lasers into it, you wait for your missiles to recycle. Firing another salvo of four short-ranged missiles into the floor, more steel and glass bellows out of the windows, and your computer responds in kind. "Objective: Destroy Third Floor of the Inner Sphere Bank Building – Complete." Now, only the tenth floor remains...

As your SRMs load another four missiles into the tubes, you watch a helicopter take off from the top of the building. You try to get a bead on it, but between the buildings and how fast it's moving, you just can't seem to find a safe time to fire. So you do the next best thing. Inform Mami.

"Helicopter coming my way, huh? Civilian?" You shake your head. "Right, I'll take a look at it and flash it if needed." In the meantime, you set about your task of flashing the final floor of the Bank Building with another four SRMs.

"Objective: Destroy Tenth Floor of the Inner Sphere Bank Building – Complete. All Primary mission objectives – Complete. Return to dust-off site for extraction." Your computer chimes in it's droning tone.

"Excellent job, kid!" Mami smiles. "Start heading back to the drop zone, I'll flash this damn Helicopter... stay still!" You hear her finish as the sounds of a PPC reverberate through her cockpit. You watch a blue streak of plasma energy strike the hovering helicopter, the body exploding into a fountain of metal and glass, the rotor atop the cabin rocketing off it's spindle, spiraling out of control towards the ground. "_Tiro Finale_ to the _Mitakihara_. The newbie and I are finished our job in the city, and are going to make our ways back. We're going to be taking it slow, so we can give the media a good shot of who saved their city." You roll your eyes at this, Mami making another pathetic excuse for her shot up 'Mech. You throttle up to catch up with her, then match her 'Mech's speed, the larger Hollander about a dozen or so meters larger then your own Commando. It's a comforting size difference, giving Mami the facade that she's the loving big sister showing her younger sibling the ropes of this thing called life.

Though she hides it rather well, you notice a hiccup in her 'Mech's movements, the left leg gimped slightly causing her to have an almost unnoticable limp. You can't help but notice the limp as the pair of you continue back to the dropship, your own speed matched to Mami's, though your 'Mech isn't limping... come to think of it, you're hardly damaged, just a Small Laser blast or two hitting your 'Mech center mass... hardly anything to be concerned with.

"Roger, Tomoe-san. The _Mitakihara_ is on standby, awaiting your arrival. We just received word from Kaname-san, she says that she's about ten minutes away from completing their own mission, and Miki-san is on radio silent. Come on aboard and we'll fix you up."

"Oh Hitomi... I'm not damaged..." You practically loose it in your cockpit, telling her how she's limping and sparking, telling her that it's nothing to be ashamed of, that everyone gets shot here and there. You hear her answer, but over a fuzz in her radio, you can't quite make it out. You try to get her to repeat it, but she simply nods. "I'll not say it again." You sigh and shake your own head, tired of her keeping up this Ms. Perfect face. As your Commando and Mami's Hollander find their way onto the _Mitakihara_, you hear the gears and hydrolics that run the ramp pull it up.

"Hold on, you two. We're going to have to head over to Kaname-san's area of operation and pick her and Akemi-san." The name sends an unknown shiver down your spine.

"In the meantime." Mami starts, her 'Mech powering down. "What do you say you and I get something to eat. I'm getting a little hungry." Mami asks you, and you agree as your own 'Mech powers down, a technician rolling a ladder towards you so you can leave. Pulling the helmet off your head and setting it on the console, you climb down as the _Mitakihara_ lurches upwards and begins to head for Madoka's location. "Good work today, kid." Mami speaks to you when you're within talking range, her hair bobbing in place as she bows. You tentatively thank her and respond that she's more to thank then you are, a line of dialogue that causes her to scoff. "Nonsense. All I did was distract the Salamander so you and the Cicada could play. I'm glad you invited the three floors of that bank building to join you." She gives a little smile, almost like the fact you just killed countless people doesn't affect her. You tentatively bring this up.

"After a while, kid..." She answers as she climbs the metal stairs towards the living area of the dropship. "After a while, people dying just... don't affect you anymore. Look at it this way, kid... if you're good in this profession... as long as there's two people left in the universe, someone's going to want someone else dead." She speaks frankly, and you're inclined to believe that she's speaking from the heart. If you didn't believe it yourself, you're in the wrong profession. She opens the elevator for you and hold it for you, allowing you to slip right in behind her. "But after that... I admit that I don't feel... completely right doing it. As people, we're not supposed to take another's life... we don't have the right to do it... but anymore? What choice do we have." You have a sudden lucid moment.

"War is in Man's nature." These happen once in a while. While usually you have trouble remembering details about your life... including what you've even said... you have these odd moments where you seem to remember something either devastating or profound.

"Sadly yes..." Mami responds. "But enough doom and gloom! Come on, let's get something to eat, hm?" You nod as she pushes a button.

You expected her to bring you to a cafeteria, some kind of kitchen or public area for something to eat, but are shocked to realize that she drags you up to, what you can only imagine, to be her personal room aboard the _Mitakihara_. She reads your confusion and gives you a smile.

"I hope you don't mind me cooking on the first date." She takes an apron off the hook and ties it around her waist, humming to herself. "I usually cook at least once a week... and this week's no different." She begins to turn on the small stove in the tiny little kitchen area, her body moving with the jerks and jostles of the ship, she's cooked in these conditions before, that much is apparent. "Have a seat." she offers you, nodding to a small cushion on the floor before a rather large table, which takes up most of the floorspace in the room. Getting to your knees, you straighten the school uniform-like skirt over your legs and wait patiently.

"Do you have room for me at the table, Ms. Tomoe?" A voice drolls behind you, and in reaction you turn to see who's there. Standing in the door, her tall figure powerful and imposing you spy a thin woman, possible early thirties, standing with her hands behind her back, a white suit breaking her silhoette nicely. As her hands come out from behind her back, you notice two obnoxiously large gold bracelets on her wrists, her eyes hidden behind a pair of dark sunglasses.

"Quistis! Of course, have a seat! I didn't realize you came with us."

"I'm always where Ms. Kaname can reach me. You should know that by now, Ms. Tomoe." She looks over in your direction, a stare that just creeps you right out. She takes a few steps into the room and sits next to you, her eye contact never breaking. Slowly lowering herself to the seat, her lips never break their flat expression as she speaks. "You must be Ms. Kaname's new find, correct?" You nod, not wanting to dare open your mouth, in case she can suck your soul out through your mouth, or something. "She speaks very highly of you... and she does not speak highly of anyone without just reasons." She nods mechanically. "Having seen your actions today, I can see why." She offers you her hand, which you take. You can't help but think she's not being civil, just going through well-practiced motions. With a hardly noticeable shake, she retracts her hand in a fashion that seems almost in... disgust.

"My name is Quistis Black. I am the Magi Mercenary Unit's Financial Advisor. I also moonlight to the same extent for Magi's sister unit, Ultanos. Usually, I only deal with Ms. Kaname as she is your unit's leader, but occasionally I see fit to mix with the grunts."

"Please don't call us that, Quistis. You know very well that we're P-" She stops for a moment, a pair of amber eyes locking with yours for a split second. "You know very well Madoka would argue that we're grunts. We're all equal in her eyes." You can't help but think she's hiding something. Quistis' stone-like mouth curls into a short smile, which quickly fades as she continues.

"Ah, yes, of course." She looks to you and, as her head turns, you think you spy her eyes behind the glasses, red orbs of an unnatural color. "I'm sorry if I didn't catch your name." Your throat seizes as you attempt to answer her. "Juh?" She smiles in what you think is an attempt at humor. "That is quite the interesting name you have, Juh." Shaking your head to dislodge the growing lump in your throat, you finally manage out your name. "Ah... I heard of you. A wonderful name. Well... I think you and I will be spending a considerable amount of time together in the near future. You will, after all, need a contract to-"

"Tea?" You hear Mami cut in, a tea pot in her hand and a cup in the other. Her eyes deadlock with Quistis as she pours the woman tea without her answering. "Madoka discussed this with you, Quistis. You can talk to the kid when Madoka thinks they're ready. Not a moment sooner." Quistis looks at you and cracks another instant smile.

"Yes... of course. My apologies." She turns back to the offered tea and takes it. Mami returns to the kitchen, Quistis turning to you as her voice drops. "Regardless of what the others think or say... you have potential. Potential that, if unrealized... may very well result in the unraveling of everything you hold dear..." She smiles again which, as with the last two, vanish almost instantly. "...just something to think about." Mami returns with another cup of tea and sets it before you, her demeanor changed.

"I hope you like my tea, kid. It's a family recipe."

"Ms. Tomoe makes very good tea." Quistis seems to muse arbitrarily, still holding hers in her hand. You nod and agree, remembering the tea she made when you first arrived, though you had very little of it. Reaching forward, you take hold of your tea cup and give it a sip, being entirely too hot to really drink at the moment, you settle on just sipping it. Mami pours herself a cup of tea and sits at another cushion, the _Mitakihara_ lurches suddenly, Mami and Quistis react by bracing their tea against the sudden jerk, you, however, aren't as lucky, and wind up getting a little bit of it on your leg. You give a little yelp of surprise, which causes Mami to laugh.

"I apologize about that... sometimes Hitomi has problems landing smoothy." The PA, almost as if on cue, squeals to life as the same female voice from before rings in.

"Whatever that sudden bump was... I can assure you it was totally _not_ me clipping the top of a mountain. At all..." Despite the burning sensation in your lap, you manage a little laugh at her outward admission of clipping a mountain. The tea on your leg cools rather quickly, the slight pain subsiding as Mami slowly sips at hers, Quistis still simply holds it. You notice that she's not actually _drinking_ any of it, but simply holds the cup and saucer in her hand. You play with the idea of asking her if she doesn't like it, but she beats you to the chase by placing the cup on the table and standing.

"I do apologize, but I must make plans to meet with Ms. Kaname and discuss... some things. I thank you for the tea, Ms. Tomoe, and I shall see you, most likely, when we return to Outreach." She bows to Mami, then turns to you and offers a similar bow. "I imagine I will be seeing more of you later. Until then, farewell." You nod as she excuses herself, leaving rather quickly. Turning you head to Mami, you blink and ask what that was all about.

"I do apologize about Quistis, kid... she can be... strange at times, but she is really good with numbers!" This seems to be dry consolidation to her, as her half-smile seems to indicate, but you simply decide to leave it where it is, nodding and taking another sip from your cup. "She handles all of our contracts so Madoka and the others can focus on our jobs..." You bring up what she said earlier that Mami seemed fit to quickly interrupt. For a split second, you see Mami's smile crack and fade, but it quickly returns. "That... is nothing you need to be concerned about at the moment." This seems more like a dismissive answer, designed to either dissuade you from asking again, or to chastise you for asking in the first place. Regardless of it's intention, you drop the subject. "When the times comes, you'll learn more but... as I told Quistis... not a moment sooner." You feel the_ Mitakihara_ slow to a stop, the distinct sounds of four fusion engines powering down a sign the dropship landed. Mami smiles as she finishes her tea, yours cool enough to make a start on it. "I need to go speak to Homura for a moment, so if you would stay here, finish your tea... and join us when you're ready. I'm sure Madoka would love to hear of our success from the one who made it possible." You nod as she leaves.

It takes you a few more minutes to finish your tea, the slightly bitter aftertaste making it slightly displeasant to finish. As you walk about the _Mitakihara_ looking for Madoka and the others, several voices from a door catch your ear.

"...less what you may think, Ms. Kaname, the potential of your newest recruit is _staggering_."

"I'm aware of that, Quistis, but you remember what happened last time. I'm not having another Solaris III incident. She can handle a 'Mech, that much is undeniable. I'm more concerned how she fairs in one-on-one combat... you can't exactly drag an Atlas 'Mech into a Barrier."

"Indeed... perhaps having her spar with another of your unit? Perhaps Ms. Akemi?"

"NOT Homura. The things she told me on this mission... dammit, I'm afraid to leave the two of them alone for any period of time, I'm afraid I'll come back to find a dead rookie and a friend holding the gun... no... not Homura." Your heart sinks at this. "Kyouko'd be too hard on her and Sayaka's a bit of a pushover..."

"Ms. Tomoe?"

"I'd have to pay her to do that. You know how she likes to show off. Asking her to go easy on the kid would be like asking her to get breast reduction surgery. She'd see it as an insult... I dunno, I'll figure it out, but right now I don't need her getting killed by a W-"

"Hey newbie!" A voice shatters the others inside, causing you to jump and turn around. You see a blue-haired, blue-eyed girl waving at you, her school uniform swaying as she walks She's grinning like an idiot, her hand flailing about in the air. You blink for a moment, trying to remember which one this was... You try a name. "Ha! Nah, I'm Sayaka. Kyouko's the redhead with personal space issues." Right, right... You seem to have mixed up Sayaka and Kyouko, but she doesn't seem too insulted about it. "So how'd your first mission go?" You give her the short of it, leaving out how you only caused your target to eject, and Mami got the living hell shot out of her 'Mech. "Sounds like you had fun. Man... all Kyouko and I ever get are scout or defend missions... I'd love to get an assignment like what you had." She shakes her head as if she suddenly remembers why she was here. "Reminds me... Mami asked me to come and get you, in case you don't know where Madoka and the others meet for debriefing. Seems like you don't need my help." She walks past you to the door where the voices were coming out of earlier, and begins pounding on the steel door.

"MA~DO~KAAAAAA~!" She calls obnoxiously loud through the steel. "Debriefing ti~me!" The door opens, the to the smiling pink-pigtailed girl you met on the 'Mech Bay back on Outreach, and the strange Quistis lady from before. Qusitis seems to be standing bolt-upright by a wall, hands behind her back.

"Miki-san!" Madoka exclaims as she sees who her attacker is. "That was fast. I wasn't expecting you back so quickly after Akemi-san and I."

"Funny thing about escort missions. When no one cares about who you're escorting they tend to go pretty fast."

"I'm sorry about giving you the crap assignment again, Miki-san... but you know how much Sakura-san loves getting paid for nothing..."

"Nah, it's alright. Gave her and I plenty of time to chat." Madoka's eyes light up as she sees you.

"Hey! Our newcomer survived! That's a plus!" You ask if you should be concerned about Solaris III. "Solaris III?" She asks, her eyes darting off to the side for a split second. "Why _should_ you be concerned with Solaris III?" Shaking her head, she ends the thought. "Anyway! I'm sure Tomoe-san and the other two are anxious to hear of our success. Come on." She slips past Sayaka, Quistis close in tow, and you and Sayaka following close behind. You follow the group to a large cafeteria-like area where you spy Mami and Homura sitting at a small table across from one another. Homura's facing the group, and you see her turn away as your eyes lock. Mami turns around and smiles.

"Madoka! Sayaka! I see you found our newcomer alright." As everyone takes a seat, you're left with only the seat next to Homura. As you approach, you watch her shift over, sitting in the middle. "Homura, stop that!" Mami chastises the raven-haired woman, who rolls her eyes and scoots back over.

"What is with you, Akemi-san? You've been nothing but sour since-"

"I don't want to talk about it." Homura answers. Madoka opens her mouth, which prompts the same answer from Homura, but harder. "_I don't want to talk about it._" You tap Kyouko on the shoulder and whisper in her ear, asking if you can take her spot.

"Yea sure." She answers softly shifting over to take the seat next to Homura, while you take her previously occupied spot. Having a person between you and Homura assured that there was a filter, in case she decided to go Princess Stabbity on you. Madoka still seems a bit flustered from Homura's attitude, but shakes her head and tries to regain some sense of control of the group.

"I see everyone managed to come back alive this time, too." Madoka smiles, nodding a little. "I love it when all my girls come back alive." You're not sure how you feel about being one of 'her girls' but she doesn't seem like a bad lot herself. Despite her age of nearly twenty, she still, somehow, manages to retain this air of being fifteen. You're not sure how she manages to pull it off, but damn would you love to be able to do it as well."Sakura-san, would you and Miki-san give your reports?"

"Sure." The red head, who you now _know_ is named Kyouko, leans forward a little and clears her throat. "Sayaka and I arrived at Nav Alpha on schedule. Once there, we had an APC and it's escort 'Mechs, one Jenner and one JagerMech. We joined up with the convoy and followed them to their destination. No problems, no hitches. End of story." She leans back more as you see Sayaka nod out of your periferals.

"Sums it up pretty well. Didn't even discharge a weapon."

"Good!" Madoka claps her hands together once and turns to Mami. "Mami-san, how was your mission?"

"Couldn't have been smoother." Mami starts. "Idle threats from Terrorist 'Mechs. Threats answered with force, we're alive, they're not. The kid took down both 'Mechs and completed the mission." Madoka nods again, turning to you like she's expecting you to confirm. For a moment you consider taking what Mami had given you, but you hardly destroyed _both_ the Salamander and Cicada. You speak up and make a point to correct Mami in the most delicate way possible, also pointing out how she also took down the Helicopter that tried to escape. Mami simply smiles and laughs. "Okay, so I embellished a little." She doesn't seem embarrassed by being caught, but you do see a little of something else, though you can't quite place it.

"Regardless, things went smoothly for you, as well. Like a well oiled machine." She paused for a moment. "Akemi-san, would you care to recount our mission?"

"Only thing left of our target is a crater." Comes her simple response. Madoka seems a bit disenfranchised by this answer, but she nods anyway.

"Thank you for the... uhm... poignant response, Akemi-san." Homura nods curtly to this. "Which brings us to our next order of business..." She turns to you and smiles, nodding. "Mami-san speaks highly of your skill and ability to act and, more importantly, react quickly. Your training record is more then justified with this, as Mami-san's praise is rare, especially how highly she spoke of you." She looks to the group. "All if favor of allowing the kid complete entrance into the Magi Mercenary Unit, raise your hand." You see five hands go up, Homura's hand stays lowered. "Akemi-san... you... don't agree?"

"No." Homura resounds quickly, not even looking at you. Madoka pauses, waiting for Homura to continue, but she never does.

"Is... there a reason for this dissension?"

"Yes." Homura speaks once more and, again, Madoka waits for embellishment.

"Are... you... going to tell us?" She stands from her seat, steps back and runs her hand through her hair, tossing it to the side carelessly.

"No." She walks out, her long raven hair chasing behind her. Madoka gives a great sigh and turns to you with apologetic eyes.

"I'm... I'm really sorry about all this, kid... Akemi-san is not usually so..."

"Aggressive?" Comes Sayaka's completion.

"Bitchy?" Kyouko chimes in at about the same time.

"Bothersome." Madoka finishes and offers you a mournful shrug. "Unfortunately, our rules stand... We can't induct you unless we have a one hundred percent yes vote... and with Homura's no vote... I can't do it." She winks to you. "Yet. Doesn't mean I can't keep you around. Like hell I'm letting Ultanos have another excellent pilot. For the time being you will remain in my employ, will be paid just like everyone else, but will not be a full member of the Magi Mercenary Unit. Until I can get Akemi-san to tell me why she's being so stubborn." You shrug, asking her what the difference is being in the unit and paid full price, and being a full member. You see Madoka visibly clam up, her lips rolling inside her mouth slightly as she tries to think. "That..." She starts, her smile quickly returning. "That's a very complicated answer. One I can neither fully explain at the time... nor could I ever think I could even understand it fully myself. Suffice to say, when the time comes, you'll know."

"Mami-san...?" Madoka continues, turning to the blonde. "Could I ask to speak with you for a moment? In my room, please?"

"Of course, Madoka." Mami responds quickly as she stands. You watch as everyone else stands and begins to stretch and move about.

"You ladies did a wonderful job today... the _Barricade's_ Jump Engine is going to need another seven days to recharge, so just mill about and keep calm..." She looks to Sayaka, her eyes locked with the blue-haired girls for a few seconds. Sayaka turns her head to catch your eye, then turns back to Madoka and nods. What the hell was that?


	3. Chapter Two

Two: "Answers To The Wrong Questions"

"Permission to speak freely, Madoka?" Mami chimes in sweetly as the door is shut behind her, entering Madoka's room behind her.

"We're mercenaries, Mami-san, not soldiers. You can always speak freely around me." Mami takes note of this and gives a simple nod. She takes her time thinking about how to best ask her question. Finally settling on the correct words, she speaks.

"What the fuck is Homura's problem?" Madoka cracks a slight laugh and shakes her head. "This isn't funny, Madoka!" Mami continues, looking worried. "Homura's always been abrasive and stubborn, but this is bordering on hostility!"

"I know, Mami-san, I know. I'm... I'm tempted to ignore our rules and just ask Quistis to-"

"Madoka, don't ignore rules. Remember what happens when you ignore rules. I want to see the girl Contracted as much as you do, but we need to keep order." Madoka nods.

"I know... I know..." Madoka shrugs and takes a seat on the love seat against the wall. "Dammit, she's my friend, but I feel like she's pushing _all_ of us away, myself included..."

"Maybe you should talk to her. Corner her, rob her of her escape." Madoka blinks at this, staring at Mami, who simply shrugs. "It's an option."

-A Few Moments Later-

"Akemi-san!" Madoka calls to Homura as she preforms a system flush on the small Clan 'Mech, the girl's head never moving as she continues, ignoring outside stimuli. "Akemi-san!" Madoka called again as she started closing the gap between herself and Homura. The girl's head never moved, her hair hanging down her back as she tapped on the little pad in her hand. "_Akemi-san!_" She emphasized, closing in on her, her third attempt meeting the same fate as her previous two. Straight behind her now, Madoka reached out and took a firm hold on Homura's shoulder. "_Homura!_" Homura reacts to this, turning to face Madoka.

"Oh." She drones. "Madoka. I didn't know you were here."

"Cut the shit, Homura. What's your damn problem with the recruit?" Madoka growled, crossing her arms under her chest, her eyes hardening at her.

"I don't have a problem with her." Homura droned, turning back to her system flush.

"Oh, bull-fucking-shit, Homura. I see how you look at her. If you had wished for laser eyes, you would have turned her to a pile of ash by now! Stop fucking lying to me, Homura, and just tell me what your problem with her is. We can work through whatever it is." Homura shakes her head.

"You don't understand, Madoka. You _can't_ understand." Madoka stood, unable to respond, both hands out and to her side, her mouth hung open as she tried to fish for a proper response.

"Geh-..." She stuttered. "Help me understand, Akemi-san... you're my friend, and I care about you." Homura turned and went back to working on her 'Mech."

"_You can never understand_." Homura growled, her voice waivering and shaking as though she was trying to hide something. "_You can never understand me, my means, or what I do. You're my friend, Kaname. As my friend, do me one favor. Keep the girl here. But do _not_ offer her a Contract._"

"What the fuck problem do you have with her become a Puella Magi, Homura!? Are you afraid she'll be better then you?" With a click, Madoka found herself talking to the exposed foot of a Dasher 'Mech. Throwing her hands up, Madoka growled something to herself. "Real mature, Akemi-san..."

-Dropship _Mitakihara_-

_Knock, knock, knock._ A soft knock breaks you from your though process, your head raising from staring at the ceiling as it's been doing so for the past ten minutes. When you're on the dropship waiting for your Jumpship's engines recharge doing nothing is, by far, the most annoying aspect of this whole Mercenary thing. You look to the door and invite whoever is on the otherside in. With a turn of the handle, a thin figure in a white suit enters, her long white air flowing behind her. "Hello." Quistis speaks, nodding to you. You offer her one of the chairs and sit up in bed. "No need to get up on my account." She walks to the offered seat... and right past it. Her eyes lock on the window and stare out, her hands cupped gently behind her back, the large gold bracelets somehow not clashing with one another. "I'm here to apologize on Ms. Akemi's behalf. The girl can be a little... rugged. Her heart, however, is in the right place I assure you."You blink at her and ask her why she's here.

"I shall answer that question in due time." She answers generally. "For now, I have a question for you, if you see fit to answer." You blink and carefully usher her to continue her question. "Tell me, if you would... the one thing you would give anything to have, or see happen?" You stumble on the question for a few seconds, unable to figure out where the hell it came from. "You do not have to give me the answer at this time... but when things come down to it... you will need an answer." You ask her about her question, to which she cracks another instant smile. "In due time." She doesn't bother looking away from the window. "Now." She speaks, finally breaking her deadlock gaze from the window and turns back to you, her eyes still hidden behind those sunglasses. "On to _your _question for me..."

You instantly chime in and ask what she's doing here. "The answer is simple. Ms. Kaname needed someone to give you your portion of your contract..." She takes out a clipboard from seemingly nowhere and looks it over. "Three complete mission objectives..." She drones. "Two confirmed kills for Ms. Tomoe, and one confirmed kill for you. The Combine has also allotted a twenty-five thousand C-Bill bonus, to cover your SRM consumption... it was a ton, yes?" You shrug and say you really weren't paying attention, that it could have been closer to a ton and a half. "Ton... ton and a half. Twenty-five thousand will cover both." You nod. "Two hundred and fifty thousand C-Bills for completion of all mission objectives... plus your fifty thousand C-Bill Bounty... atop your twenty-five thousand C-Bill Ammunition allotment..." She scribbles some numbers on the paper before looking up to you. "Does three hundred and twenty-five thousand C-Bills sound about correct to you." You nod, but then mention she's the financial officer. She cracks another smile (you swear these things die in oxygen...) and folds the clip board to her chest.

"I'm the financier of the Magi Mercenary Unit and the Ultanos Mercenaries. As you are affiliated with neither company at the current time, I am only the... as you'd say... 'Middle man.'" She tosses you the clipboard and pen. "Sign, please. Your money will be wired directly into your account, and should be available for use when we return to Outreach." A week delay between then and now you'd HOPE it would be there by then. You sign next to your name and look over everyone else. You notice Mami managed to eek out an additional kill and, as such, an extra twenty-five kay. Nodding, you continue down. Sayaka and Kyouko only netted their contract fee of a quarter million each for their escort mission. Then you come to Madoka and Homura.

Their numbers are staggering. Madoka's contract was worth fifteen _million_. What the HELL is on Zosma that the DC would want that would be worth _that_ kind of money!? Your eyes fall across the killscore on her line. Fifty three kills. _Fifty three confirmed-fucking-kills_. Instantly you dart to Homura's line, her contract worth fifteen mill as well, the girl scoring-

The clipboard falls from your hands, bouncing once off your lap, mouth hanging open. How the _fuck_ can she get THAT many kills in a mission?! You start to speak.

"A wise man once told me... not to ask questions you're not ready to hear the answer to yet..." Reaching down, Quistis picks up the clipboard and tucks it back under her arms. She bows, her face still looking as painfully neutral as she can muster, and excuses herself. "Do excuse me but I have other matters to attend to. Until we meet again." Quistis excuses herself, stopping in the door. "Ah. Ms. Tomoe. Hello."

"Is the kid in?"

"Yes, we just finished talking." She leaves allowing Mami in. Mami smiles as she see you, bowing a little. "I apologize about the intrusion but... do you have a few moments?" You make a smart-ass comment about how you're terribly busy staring at the ceiling, which causes her to laugh. "Yes, I can see that is the most interesting ceiling in the universe... think you can pry yourself away from it for ten minutes for a little supplimentary training?" You pique an eyebrow and inquire about this. "Madoka wanted me to see if you knew any martial skills, aside from your stellar BattleMech record. Sometimes, our missions force us into periods when we don't have access to any 'Mech, so we must be skilled in some basic martial skills." You're taken aback by this first, but then Madoka's words come back... she had asked Mami to do it... she _actually_ asked Mami to spar with you... great. You swallow hard and agree, remembering what Madoka said about 'going easy' on you. Mami chuckles a little.

"Why do you look so pale? Afraid of a little unarmed combat?" You juggle the idea of telling her not to murder you with whatever freaky-deaky kung-fu she knows, but you just shake your head. "Aaaah... such a bad liar. Don't worry, you'll be alive. Beaten and swollen, but alive." She leads you out of the room down the hallway. "Each member of the Magi Mercenary Unit has to have some skill with a weapon of some kind. Sayaka chose the sword, Kyouko's good with a spear... Madoka's lethal with a bow, and I'm no chump with a rifle." You're freaking out the whole way to wherever Mami's leading you. When you arrive, you see Kyouko and Sayaka talking on a mat. It appeared to be some kind of dojo you walked into, the floor covered in a soft padding. Kyouko and Sayaka had changed out of their uniforms, Kyouko wearing a strange red dress and black, thigh high socks, Sayaka dressed in a long cape and a blue halter and matching skirt, her long white socks attached to her thighs with... belts? Neither of them are wearing shoes. You see Kyouko shouldering a long red spear, and Sayaka pawing a sword at her side. Turning to Mami you tell her there are less frighting ways of killing you.

"Kill you? No no. They won't hurt you. They're just here to test you. You'll fight Sayaka first... then Kyouko... then both of them if you still think you've got the stamina." She went to the small weapons rack by the door and pulled a staff and a training sword out, tossing them both to you. "Pick one." You catch the sword but let the staff fall, kicking it back to her. She catches it effortlessly. "You may have competition, Sayaka." Mami mused, Sayaka stepping up.

"We'll see about that. Ready kid?" Sayaka unsheathes the sword at her side, and the second the lights glint off the blade, a thought crosses your mind. That's not dull. It's _very sharp_. You start to protest her getting a real weapon, but you're cut off by the blue-haired girl charging. Her sudden attack gives you little chance to think – forced to react, bringing your sword up to block her attack. The steel blade bounces off as the swing connects, forcing Sayaka to recoil. She cracks a smile at this and continues her assault. Each and every one of her attacks, lightning quick and impossibly strong, you manage to, miracles upon miracles, block with the flimsy training sword you were given. You blurt out something about this not being fair.

"If you're caught out of your 'Mech, kid, you can bet your pretty ass that they won't fight fair. Besides... Sayaka's going easy on you." _Easy?!_ This is her idea of going _easy_ on you!? You pity the poor fool who has to fight her at full skill. With another parry, you duck under her follow-up strike, then pounce tackling her.

"G-geh!" She grunts as she falls. Recovering, you bring your foot down on her sword arm, locking her weapon down. A smile crosses her face as she tries to free her sword. "Son of a-" She muses with a smile. "Alright, kid. You win. You win! Please get off my wrist before you bruise it..." Letting her hand up, you take a few steps back. She picks herself and her blade off the ground and sheathes it. Cracking her back she steps off the mat and lets Kyouko step up.

"Alright, Sayaka. Hang back and watch a master." Kyouko smiles, taking the spear from her shoulders and adopting a fighting stance with it. Your heart pounds in your chest as you look her over. Sayaka's stance was one of relaxation... this girl looks like she'd rip your heart out and eat it before you could blink. "Alright, rookie. When you're ready." She holds her pose, waiting for you to make the first strike. Shaking your head you can't quite believe your eyes at this. She slowly reaches into her small pocket on one of the tails of her dress and retrieves a box of chocolate pretzels. Taking one from the box, she placed it in her mouth, smiling. "Aaaaany time." You study her stance, trying to find some kind of hitch in her defense. She's got nothing, that little red gem set in her costume twinkling in an almost taunting fashion. Fuck it. You start off taking a step forward and give a weak strike, which she parries. She answers by thrusting the point towards you, which you manage to dodge. Chopping towards her legs, she leaps over the strike as she recovers, she flicks her pointer finger knuckle across her nose. "S'at it?" She laughs. You shake your head and try testing her again, a loose thrust near her face, which she dodges. You follow up with a few more thrusts, each one is dodged effortlessly by Kyouko's fluid, almost impossible motions. She laughs as she dodges, hoisting her spear back onto her shoulders. As she shuts her eyes to laugh, you rear back and swing at her chest. You watch her eyes quickly dart between your sword and where it's planning on connecting, and by your estimations, it should bounce off that gem on her-

"_NO!_" You hear her shriek, just before getting bashed across your chest by the butt end of her spear. As the shaft connects with your chest, you see the gem glow shortly, then hear something inside you crack as you're thrown against the far wall, head slamming into the steel wall.

-_Mitakihara_ Sparring Deck-

The sickening sound of the young recruit's head slamming into the wall causes Mami and Sayaka to gasp. "Oh my god!" Mami yelps, running to the aid of the unconscious recruit. Sayaka goes to Kyouko, who has slumped onto the ground, covering the gem on her chest, panting like crazy.

"Kyouko... Kyouko are you alright...?!" She wailed, dropping to her knees, hugging the girl. Her eyes darted across the room, then down at her hands, which were violently shaking. "Speak to me, Kyouko..."

"I..." She stammered, robotically putting her arms around Sayaka. "I saw... my life..."

"Sayaka..." Mami calls from the far side. "I need some help over here..." Sayaka strokes Kyouko's head, giving her a little kiss on the forehead.

"I'll be right back..." Kyouko nods robotically as Sayaka goes to Mami.

"She's got seven broken ribs, a concussion and is bleeding internally... is there anything you can do to help her?"

"Why should I? She almost killed Kyouko."

"_She didn't know about our damn Soul Gems!_" Mami growled, twacking Sayaka upside the head. "If you two didn't _insist_ on transforming to avoid putting your uniforms in the _laundry_ like _normal_ people, _THIS_ wouldn't have happened! Either help her if you can or I'll tell Madoka _YOU _contributed to her death!" Mami had a point, and Sayaka had to admit it. Crouching at the girl's side, she put her hands on her, one on her chest, the other on her head, and closed her eyes, her hands glowing a soft blue as the gem set in her stomach did the same. "I can heal her broken bones and the bleeding... but I'm going to leave her with a few bruises..." Mami nods.

"Good idea... don't want her getting suspicious... when you're done, bring her to her room, and let her rest... I need to have a chat with Madoka about all this... The less she knows... the more dangerous it is. For all of us." Sayaka nods, her eyes still closed.

-Dropship _Mitakihara_. Madoka's Quarters-

A knock on the door interrupted Madoka, the girl lowering the book from her sight. "Come in." She speaks, the door opening slowly, revealing Mami on the other side. "Ah. Mami-san. What can I do for you?"

"We need to talk, Madoka. It's... about our recruit." Madoka put the book mark in her book and closed it, moving the novel to her bedside table.

"What's wrong. You look worried."

"You need to tell her. About us, Quistis and the Puella Magi." Madoka blinked.

"I do? Why do you say that?"

"She and Kyouko were sparring and... one of her strikes was about hit Kyouko's Soul Gem... Kyouko reacted and hurt her... badly." Madoka's face twisted into a look of shock.

"Oh my! Are they-"

"They're alright. Kyouko's a little shaken, and Sayaka's healing the recruit as we speak... but this secrecy almost cost a life... at the least." Madoka gave a sage nod, thinking about the options.

"I understand the concern, Mami-san... but I don't think we can risk telling her yet."

"Ma-" Mami stammers, trying to understand. "Madoka, why? She almost _killed_ Kyouko."

"Why was Kyouko transformed?" Mami sighed, shaking her head.

"You know how much that girl dislikes doing laundry."

"So... she transforms into her combat outfit... burning magic to do so, might I add... to avoid laundry..." Madoka speaks slowly, trying to understand everything.

"Yes, ma'am." Madoka groans. "I understand it's stupid but..."

"No... it's Kyouko... and I should expect it by now. How's the kid? Will she pull through?"

"She'll be fine. Kyouko hit her pretty hard, broke a half-dozen ribs, gave her a concussion and a couple internal injuries... Sayaka's healing her now, but she's going to leave her with a couple of bruises." Madoka nodded at this.

"Good... When she awakes, tell her Kyouko freaked at hit her hard enough to knock her out. I'll have a talk with Kyouko about her loathing of work and cite this as a learning experience. Maybe almost dying will knock some sense into her."

"Shame it's almost got to kill her before she learns her damn lesson." Mami nods.

"Oh... you'd know more then I would, but do we have enough armor to repair that Vindicator 'Mech Akemi-san and I salvaged?" Madoka chimed in, curios to the state of the salvaged 'Mech.

"Sadly, no. The few tons of armor we do have had to go into the _Tiro Finale_." Madoka nods.

"Well, no harm in waiting until we get back to Outreach. I'm sure Jake'll have some spare stuff for me if I flutter my eyelashes enough." She smiled at her joke, but knew very well it was more true then anything; both of them did. Mami gave a little laugh, in light of the current situation. Bowing, Mami excused herself, going to go check on the injured. Upon exiting, she found Sayaka carrying the unconscious form of the recruit, Kyouko behind her, still pale-faced.

"Ah... Sayaka, Kyouko..."

"I managed to keep her alive... she'll be fine in a bit, but she needs rest." Mami nods at this, patting Kyouko on the head.

"And you, Kyouko? How are you?"

"I..." She inhaled, trying to steady her heartbeat. "I'll be good... there's something about almost dying... tends to make you appreciated life more..." She gives a half-hearted smiled, but Mami could tell it's forced.

"I'm glad, Kyouko... I'm glad you're both going to be okay."

"What... uh... did Madoka say...?" Kyouko asked, pushing her fingers together, embarrassed to have to ask.

"She'll talk to you in a while, Kyouko. Until then, just try to calm down. She's not angry or anything, so there's no need to be worried." Kyouko gave a great sigh at this and nodded.

"Ahh... thanks Mami... that makes me feel tons better."

"She will, however..." Mami continued. "Be discussing your disregard for your work load. All of that could have been avoided if you weren't so lazy." Kyouko nodded at this.

"At this point, Mami, I'll take even that. As long as she's not mad..." A crass grin crossed Kyouko's face. "If it means anything, kid's got durability. A hit like that would have killed a Familiar... she took it like a champ."

"And broke several bones in the process, Kyouko, please try to keep things in perspective."

"I am. From my 'perspective', the kid's got all the makings of a Puella Magi. A damn good one, at that."

"That is not for us to decide. It's for Madoka to. Don't you have a 'Mech to be maintaining?" Kyouko waved it off.

"Oh yea... I gotta repair all that damage I didn't get in my last mission." Sayaka emerged from the recruit's room, after having placed her there to rest.

"She should be up in a couple hours."

-Several Hours Later-

You wake up several hours later with a throbbing headache and a pain in your chest. Looking groggily around, you find yourself in a bed in a room you're unfamiliar with.

"Oh, good. You're awake." You hear a voice from your bedside. As you turn to face the voice, you see a familiar blonde face smiling at you. Mami. "Try not to move so much. You took a nasty knock to your head. How are you feeling?" You tactfully remark that you feel like something that would come out of someone's back end and lie back onto the bed. Mami laughs a little at this and nods. "Yes, I imagine you would feel like that. Don't worry, we checked you over, and you don't seem to have any lingering injuries. You'll be back on your feet and operational again long before we reach Outreach. Just sit back and relax these next few days, and don't strain yourself." She pauses for a moment. "Oh, and although she doesn't have the stones to say it herself, Kyouko sends you her most heartfelt apologies, and assures you it will never happen again." You nod with your eyes closed, saying that little piece of jewelry must be important to her. "Erm... yes. You could say it's got a rather special place in her soul." She stands and bows. "Well, I'll allow you to rest for now. Madoka says we'll be back on Outreach in the next six days or so, and there's nothing left for us to do but wait, so... rest." She turned and started towards the door.

And rest is exactly what you do for the next seven days, simply lying in bed and doing your best to rest. With each passing day, you feel better and better.

-ComStar Mercenary Relations Hub; July 30th 3059-

The week comes and goes, and before you really realize it, the _Barricade_ makes another FTL jump to Outreach. Your 'Mechs are off-loaded by some of the crew, and you, along with the rest of the Magi Mercenary Unit, depart the _Mitakihara_ the same way you came in a short week prior. The ComStar Mercenary Hub is quiet when the six of you arrive, a few people going about their business of living, as they kill time between contracts. A lone man standing by the pole, short brown hair and a silver and gold suit (which looked _horrendous _might you add) perks up as he sees you and the others depart.

"Madoka!" He calls, his arms outstretched. The pink-haired commander smiles as she sees the man.

"Jake!" She answers, running to hug him.

"Ooooh! How's my little sister doing?"

"Fantastic! Had three contracts on Zosma. All taken care of."

"How is Zosma these days? Last time I was there it was a dustball."

"It's still a dustball." Madoka answers with a shrug, releasing the man from the hug.

"And how are the rest of you?" He opens his arms as Sayaka hugs him as well, then followed by Kyouko. "Sayaka... Kyouko... long time no see."

"Great seeing you again." Kyouko smiles as she releases the man from her hug.

"Heya, Mami." He speaks to Mami as she gives him a hug, this one a little more reserved, like family, instead of an old friend. "Still kickin' ass and taking names?"

"You know it." She answers.

"Homu!" The man continues, expecting Homura to give him a hug. "Long time no-" He stops as she walks right past him. "See..." He turns to Madoka with a question on his lips.

"I don't know, Jake... she's been like this since we got our newest member..."

"Speaking of which!" He turns to face you. "That must be you, correct? I see they wasted no time in putting you in one of those adorable 'uniforms' of theirs. I tell you, it took me six months to convince the Mercenary Review and Bonding Commission that a 'serious and respectable' Mercenary Unit can, in fact, have uniforms that look like their from an old school or something. Six months." He opens his arms. "C'mon, don't be shy, gimme a hug." You feel no obligation to do so, but you indulge the man anyway. After pulling away, he smiles. "Oh, man Madoka. Newbie gives great hugs. Keeper."

"Unfortunately, we've had a... hitch on the voting process... Homura has been... reluctant to allow full membership."

"Really? I swear, since Homu changed her hair style, she's gotten all," He dropped his voice. "Dark and serious." He returned to his normal tone. "It's enough to make a man concernacus."

"I'm sure Akemi-san will come around soon. I think she's just worried that she'll get replaced."

"Oh yea. Replace Homura. That's a funny one. With her..." He looks at you, and a look from Madoka stops him. "Piloting... skills. That will be hard to do." Madoka nods at this.

"I'd love to sit and chat all day, but I've got to discuss some financial things with Quistis. She's been riding me since the twenty seventh about these things... and you know Quistis. She'll only get more insistant."

"I'd love to stay too, but I've gotta go make a call home." Sayaka chimes. "Parents get worried when I don't call."

"I gotta go do... girl... stuff... over there... for a bit." Kyouko answers, pointing in a random direction. "Catch ya later." She and Sayaka run off.

"Jeebus Criminies!" The man exclaims, slapping his forehead. "You must think I'm some kind of nutter, I didn't introduce myself!" He gives you a lazy, but clean salute. "Jake Ballenfield, leader of the Ultanos Mercenary Unit. Third best damn Mercenary company on Outreach."

"He's also, incidentally, Madoka's best friend." Mami chimes in.

"Don't you have somewhere to be like the rest of them, Twindrills?" Mami laughed a little and shook her head.

"Apparently with everyone going off and doing their own thing, I get to spend time with the new kid. I don't mind really... she's a good sort."

"Ah, yea. Sayaka and Kyouko are probably going to be spending some time together, and Madoka and Homura spend a lot of time together. At least you've got someone to talk to now, hm?" You're starting to feel all warm and fuzzy from all the compliments.

"C'mon, whaddaya say we get some food? On me." Jake chimed in, with you and Mami giving an emphatic nod.

-Magi Mercenary Unit Company Office; Outreach-

"It's getting worse, Quistis! She does nothing but berate the kid, and behind her back too! I mean, I'd understand if she like... killed her parents or something but... dammit!" Madoka growled, gripping at her hair. "This is so frustrating! Akemi-san's my friend and she's acting like a total bitch, and I don't know _why_. That's the worst part about it. There's no reason for her to be acting like this!"

"Did you try confronting her about it?"

"Oh yea. I sure did. She fuggin'... time stopped away." Quistis nodded sagely, looking through a few papers on her desk.

"Perhaps you should consider suspending her due to unprofessional attitude." Quistis mused. "And besides... as your own rules state... in order to make someone a full member of the Magi Mercenary Unit, you require a one hundred percent 'yes' vote of all active members... suspending her would allow you to pass the vote."

"That's dirty, underhanded, and cheap Quistis, and you know it. If I did that, she'd think I had meant to do it from the get-go. If it ever comes to me needing to suspend Akemi-san, I'll do it... but I will not call another vote until she's back on normal duty." The sun glinted off her sunglasses.

"Suit yourself." Reaching up, she removed the glasses and placed them on the desk. Behind the dark shades was a pair of ruby eyes, very unnatural, and _definitely_ not human. "Just keep in mind that in doing your own job so... diligently... you're preventing me from doing my own."

"Oh, don't give me that 'heat death of the universe' bullshit, Quistis. If the universe hasn't burnt up already, it's not going to."

"Don't be so sure, Ms. Kaname. I shall state it again. Not contracting your newest find will inevitably lead to... a great amount of regret on the parts of many people."

"You say that like having her make a contract is going to save the universe, or something... fuck she can do that just as well from the cockpit of a BattleMech."

"There are some things these... atrocious machinations of yours cannot solve, Ms. Kaname. I am only dealing with them now, because there is no other way to find young girls..."

"Willing to give up their souls to you?"

"You were rather willing."

"I was fifteen and desperate! I would have done _anything_ to pass my exams!" She rubbed her nose bridge and sighed. "We're getting off topic. I won't suspend Akemi-san at the moment, but the option is most assuredly on the table. I'll see if I can't get her to open up to me, talk a little... but at this point, I doubt that'll do anything but push her further away."

"Ms. Tomoe seems to enjoy the kid's company." Quistis continued, putting her sunglasses back on.

"As do I. I just wish I had more time to spend with the kid. Tri-M scores are promising at the very least, and by what Mami tells me, she's a killer." She paused. "Quistis..."

"Mm?" Madoka hesitated for a moment, looking at the white-haired, white-suited woman as she scanned papers.

"Do you think we could do it?" Quistis looked up, tilting her head a little left.

" 'Do it', Ms. Kaname?"

"Yea... you know... go back to Terra? Where it all began?"

"The ruins of that city are still ruins for a reason, Ms. Kaname. I would ill-advise any expedition to Mitakihara."

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun!"

"It'll be dangerous."

"Dangerously fun! Besides, it's only a jump away, we take a week and go out, hang out around the planet, then when our engines are recharged, we head back." Quistis put her pen down and looked at her, taking her sunglasses off once more.

"I'll make you a deal, Ms. Kaname. Allow me to contract your newcomer, and I'll find the money to finance a trip to Mitakihara." Madoka pouted.

"That's not fair."

"Perfectly fair. The amount of misery and grief surrounding that place? You'd be suicidal going in with fewer then seven as-is. Six is pushing it."

"Fine. I'll have a chat with Akemi-san, see if I can't get a yes vote from her." She started for a the door as Quistis put her sunglasses back on. "It'll be like getting blood from a stone..."

"You give Ms. Akemi too little credit."

"No." Madoka responded, gripping the door handle. "I give myself too little credit."

-ComStar Mercenary Relations-

"So nice to have a sit down with your best friends and just... have tea, wouldn't you agree, Jake?" Mami asked the man across from you. You had worked your way back to Mami's little portion of the Mercenary Hub, where you and her first met, and she was busy serving you and Jake tea. Jake seemed to quite enjoy sitting down... which you find quite odd, considering he's the leader of another Mercenary company. "How did your contract go on Halcion?"

"I fucking hate Halcion." He blurted out. "Shit-hole planet with nothing to do but suck. Smashed a couple of loyalist 'Mechs left over by Spectre Company's little rampage last year. I swear, fuckin' Spectre Lance can't finish a damn mission, they're always messing _something_ up." Spectre Company is a Mercenary Lance that's affiliated with the Wolf's Dragoons. They're decent but, as Jake pointed out, they do have a tendency to let a few loose-ends fly. He took a sip from his tea. "So, Twindrills, can I ask you a question?"

"So long as you refrain from calling me 'Twindrills'."

"Oh, you like it." Jake mused, smiling. With another sip from the cup, he continued. "D'you think Madoka'd want some of those spare weapons I salvaged out of our last mission? Couple'a lasers... a PPC or two and an autocannon. Plus like... a hundred and fifty tons of armor or something like that."

"Well, she did pull a Vindicator from her mission on Zosma, and was saying that we didn't have the stuff to repair it. So, I imagine she'll be happy with any aid you can lend." Jake nodded to this.

"She made the 'bat her eyelashes' comment, didn't she?" Mami laughs at his comment, but nods. "Ah, I know her too well." Something about Mami's comment sets you on edge slightly... not having enough armor to repair a Vindicator? Most dropships carried a hundred plus tons of armor on board for field repairs... come to think of it, that would certainly explain why Mami's Hollander was still damaged when you landed back on Outreach. Despite your better judgment, you ask Mami about the situation of the company as it stands, citing even her damaged 'Mech. At this evidence, Mami sighs.

"Look, kid... it's no secret amongst us all here that... we're not well-to-do. At all. Those three contracts? We only managed to get them, because no one else wanted them. We're in debt to the Mercenary Review and Bonding Commission pretty deep, and most of our funds go to paying that debt off. The only reason we're still around is due to the kindness of Jake and Ultanos."

"I help float most of their personal expenses." He elaborates.

"So... no, we're not so well off. But we're good people! You should know that! We're just five girls trying to make it in this world." You counteract her 'good people' comment with the whole 'Kyouko bashing you with her spear' argument. "Kyouko just got a little heated, that's all. She was really apologetic after she realized what happened... please don't hold it against her. I know this isn't the best unit, financially to be in kid... but we're a family. All of us. Madoka, Sayaka, Kyouko, you, myself... even Homura when she's not being a curmudgeon about things... and Jake. We're all a family."

"To me, I feel like I'm in one of those harem animes." He smiles at his comment, which causes both of your to chuckle a little. In light of her argument, you have to agree with her. You're alive. Your 'Mech will be taken care of well enough, and you've got people you can rely on. Really, when it comes down to it, that's all you can ask for. Jake takes a sip of his tea as he looks you over, her eyes resting on your face uncomfortably long. You shift your gaze away which seems to break him from his own stare. "Ya know..." He begins, putting the tea cup on the table. "You have really pretty eyes..."

"Jake..." Mami warns him. "Madoka would be none-too happy if she discovered you were hitting on a member of her squad." She laughs as she continues. "That wasn't her, at least."

"No no..." He holds two fingers up gently in a dismissive manner, looking at her momentarily. "I'm being totally professional about this... she has the prettiest eyes I've seen in a woman in a long time..." You ask him what color they are. "You can't be serious, girl. You don't even know what color your eyes a-"

You hear Mami clear her throat, which stops Jake. He blinks to her and shrugs. "What?" He asks. You shake your head and tell Mami it's alright, that she can tell him. Mami sighs and turns to Jake once more.

"Jake... she's got a very strange genetic disorder called Self-Audible Amnesia. She... doesn't know anything about herself. She can relate information but... doesn't retain it."

"You mean like... she doesn't even know her own name?" You shake your head. "Oh damn I'm... I'm sorry..." Shaking your head once again, you tell him it's alright, that you've lived through all the insults and degradation your whole life. "That's not the point. You shouldn't _have_ to live through all that." He would have continued, but the sound of the door opening interrupted him.

"Am I interrupting anything...?" Quistis asks as she slowly walks into the room, hands behind her back.

"No. No, nothing at all, Ms. Black. Have a seat." Jake offers Quistis, who politely declines.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I cannot stay. I would like to actually have a word with you, if I could." She turns to face you, to which you respond with a nod as you get to your feet.

"Quistis." Mami gives her the worst stare ever. "You know the rules."

"Relax, Ms. Tomoe. I'm not going to go behind Ms. Kaname's back."

"You better not. She's gonna be so pissed if you do." You ask what everyone's talking about, and the three answers you get do not bode well.

"Nothing." Mami retorts.

"Nothing." Quistis answers as well.

"Lesbian threesomes." Jake chimes in, extorting a stare from Mami. "What? Ya'll already had the 'nothing' category covered, I thought I might throw my two cents in..."

"Regardless... you can talk to her... but no... _funny business._" This doesn't bode well. They keep speaking in vaguities around you, almost as if there's some secret you're not supposed to know. You finally get sick of it. It's been like this for a week, everyone speaking in vague almosts around you, and being all-round unforthcoming. Finally you speak up.

"She does have a point, Mami... She deserves to know a _little_, don't you think?"

"It's not for me to say, Jake." Jake finished his tea, stood, then took your hand.

"Right then. We're off to see the boss lady, get this girl some answers."

"Jake, don't! Madoka's..."

"Madoka Schmadoka. Kid needs to know _something_ or we're just gonna push her away."

"This is a bad idea but... I suppose she does need to know..."

-Madoka's Office-

You follow Mami, Jake and Quistis into Madoka's office, the girl staring at a stack of papers before her, pen scribbling madly across the paper. "Madoka." Jake speaks as he enters.

"Oh... hello Jake... I'm sorry, if you've got something to say, make it quick but... I'm really busy at the moment..." She trails off as she sees who else is behind him. "Oh... Mami-san... you brought the kid, too... something the matter?"

"She needs to be told. Not everything, but the kid needs to know _something_ about your approval process." Madoka blinked.

"I already have. We need a one hundred percent vote before-"

"No... Madoka..." Mami chimes in timidly. "Details." Her pen went down slowly as she looked down, mouth hung open like she's looking for the right words.

"Details... then... I suppose Quistis put you up to this?" Her eyes locked with Quistis' glasses. "Well... okay. If what Mami-san says is true... I don't see you freaking out." She stands and looks you with her pink eyes which... somehow... had become very hard. Slowly walking around her desk, she takes a seat on the opposite end and looks at you, her legs crossed over one another, hiding her underwear from sight (most likely Jake's). "Tell me." She begins an obviously well-rehearsed speech. "What's your opinion on... magic?" You scoff a little at this, going into a slightly callous, dismissive retort about how magic is nothing more then a poor explanation for the unknown devised by the incompetent Neanderthal brain. This answer causes Madoka and Mami both to laugh cutely, Madoka covering her mouth with a hand as she does so.

"I like your answer. I can see you're grounded in fact." She nods, the meaning behind her words unknown to you. "You take what's given to you at face value, only listening to what your eyes and ears tell you." Another nod. "I respect that. But let me tell you something. I respect your answer... but you're wrong." You take her own response in stride, and nod. You're no stranger to being wrong, you would just prefer it wasn't simply 'you're wrong' with no reasons behind it. "Magic exists... though it only shows itself to people that are truly gifted with it. You'll find no wizards or sorcerers here, though... Magic only exists to a certain, slim group of people." You ask if she has proof. "Oh yes. There is plenty of proof to this. I won't say anymore to this, as I don't want to overwhelm you, but let me say this. You fall in this certain, slim group of people... and I believe you have it in you to not only use magic... but use it well enough to be the best... dare I say." She shrugs and nods to Mami. "Consider it something to think on."


	4. Chapter Three

Three: "Solaris VI"

You return to your room to do a little thinking about what Madoka told you. Magic? Existing? You know you're a bit young but... you grew out of fantastic stories like this years ago. The only 'magic' you acknowledge anymore is the power money has over people. It's been a long few days, and you decide it would be best if caught an early night. You might be able to wake up in the morning and laugh the whole 'magic' conversation off as a crazy dream.

Unfortunately, sleep doesn't come to you easily that night, nor is it a dreamless sleep. When you finally manage to close your eyes, you find your mind plagued by a menagerie of horrific sights. Cities left in ruins, people running and screaming, some dying horrendous deaths at the hands of some unknown force. Just as you are about to see the source of such death and destruction, you are suddenly jarred awake by your own lingering fears of seeing the creature. Awoken with a start, you scan the area. Nothing. Peering out the window to your left, you find that night had fallen over Outreach, the clock at your side confirming that it is, indeed, eleven at night. With a shaking hand, you wipe the sweat from your brow and push the soaked covers off of you.

This is embarrassing. You're a Mercenary, you're not a kid anymore. Nightmares don't scare you. But this was no nightmare. This made nightmares look like dreams of kittens and puppies all having a hard time falling asleep. No, this kind of nightmare makes you wish for the kind of dream where you question whether or not you're even still alive when you wake. You get to your feet and stumble into the bathroom to wipe the sweat and the sleep from your eyes. Something burns in the back of your mind, something intangible. You've got to tell someone. Madoka needs her sleep, so you best not bother her, Homura's acted like you murdered her parents since you got here, so she's out of the question, and you don't really know Sayaka or Kyouko enough to bother them. Sorry Mami. You're it. You stumble over to the keypad and push her room number in, and after a few minutes, you see Mami's face, her hair falling gently across her back, appear in the screen. Her face, despite how tired she looks, still manages a smile when she sees you. "Good evening." She greets you with a gentle word.

You tell her about your dream, rough detail first, and with each word, her smile slowly fades. "Hold on one moment." She begins. "I'll be over in a moment, we can talk better face to face." You nod and turn off the screen, turning the lights on low and having a seat at the table.

Mami arrives about ten minutes later, carting a tea pot in one hand and two cups in the other. "I made you some tea. It always helps me when I can't sleep." This girl's too kind to you. She sits down at the table across from you and sets the cups down, one in front of each of you, and pours the tea. It's warm to the touch, not too hot not too cold, and soothes your nerves marvelously. "So, tell me about this dream you had." You slowly begin to repeat what you told her rather frantically over the intercom, going over each detail as clearly as you remember it, Mami nodding and bobbing her head gently as her eyes were closed loosely. She's not tuning you out, quite the opposite, she's tuning everything _but_ you out, ignoring everything around her except your words.

You continue for about twenty minutes, extrapolating on your words, telling her all the parts that freak you out, all the bloody, gorey details, and even start to break down into a frantic fit of crying as your conversation with Mami starts to come to a close. "Ssssh..." She gently shushes you, her smiling face soothing you. "It was just a dream. Nothing's going to hurt you, nothing's going to happen to you." Her words comfort you, but you are still, understandably, unnerved by the dream. As you try to calm yourself, one detail resurfaces that was forgotten earlier. A name.

"I'm... sorry, could you repeat that?" She asks you. In your reverie, you must have spoken it. You repeat it once more, Mami blinking. "Clan Barrier Witch? That's... not one of the major clans... and it's not one the Inner Sphere's had dealings with in the past... What is this 'Clan Barrier Witch'?" Her words seem genuine, which after being lead around for the past week is refreshing. She finishes her tea about the same time you finish yours, your nerves much calmer now and you feel sleep ready to take you at a moment's notice. Standing, you bow to Mami and apologize for the inconvenience. "Oh, nonsense. I'm always willing to help a friend." She stands herself, collecting her own cup. "I'm going to leave the pot of tea here. If you want some in the morning, all the better." She bows as well, her long hair falling about her face. As she rights herself, she pushes her unruly locks behind her ears. "Good night." She turns and leaves, giving you a little wave as she closes the door. Slipping back under the covers, you pull them over you and close your eyes, sleep overtaking you in moments.

Meanwhile, in Quistis' office, Madoka and the white-suited woman sat at a table, playing chess. "I still fail to see why you are reluctant to suspend Homura on account of her behavior. Doing so would allow you to pass the vote." Quistis, playing the black side, waited for Madoka to make her first move. Thinking, the pink-haired girl fingered her right Knight and jumped the blocking pawn, moving it one square to the left.

"I'm not going to do it, Quistis, because it's cheap and underhanded." Quistis rubbed her chin as she thought about her move, hovering her hand over the mirroring Knight to the one Madoka just moved, moving it to the square before Madoka's. "And besides, ever since Homura's training accident, she's been... different." Taking the pawn that was in front of her Knight initially, she slid it up one square, which was answered by Quistis taking her Front-Queen pawn and sliding it up two. "More aggressive... almost hostile."

"Hm." Quistis mused as Madoka took the right-side Bishop and slid it two squares to the upper right, Quistis instantly answering by capturing it wit her right-side Bishop. "Perhaps you should call a meeting of the others... Mami, Sayaka and Kyouko. Perhaps they can offer some counsel." Madoka stared hard at the board before either moving or answering. Quickly sliding the pawn before her Queen forward one space, she continued to speak.

"I could." Madoka responded as Quistis moved the pawn before her King forward one square. "But what do I tell them?" Madoka slid her Queen up one spot. "That I want to contract the girl, but I want to do it without Akemi-san's approval?" Quistis pushed her King-side Bishop up-right two squares.

"You tell them the truth." Quistis muttered, interlacing her fingers under her chin. Madoka paused as she pushed her King-Front pawn forward one, Quistis reacting instantly by pushing the Bishop she had in Madoka's territory one rank to the upper right. "Tell them that Homura is being difficult." Madoka answered by sliding her Queen three squares to the upper left. Scratching her chin, Quistis thought. "Tell them she's being difficult, and she's stopping a potentially great ally from joining you." Sliding the Bishop in Madoka's territory to the upper left, she captured one of Madoka's Rooks.

"I don't know, Quistis... I just don't." She slid her Queen down one. "Check." Deftly, Quistis moved her Queen-side Knight in the way of Madoka's check. Sliding her Queen-side Bishop to the upper right, Madoka sighed. In response, Quistis captured Madoka's King-Side Knight.

"You're getting sloppy." Quistis remarked, the pink-haired girl moving her Bishop up left one square, allowing Quistis to Castle her King. Madoka moved her last Knight out of the back rank, right behind her Queen, allowing Quistis to move her King-Front pawn forward one.

"I know..." Madoka responded, sliding her Knight to the spot to the upper right of her Queen, Quistis putting her own Queen-Side Knight next to Madoka's. "I get sloppy when I get worried." She moved her Queen out of danger, putting it behind her Knight, to which Quistis responded by moving her Knight two down and one to the left.

"Check." Quistis mused with a soft smile. Forced to move her King out of check by moving it one to the right, Quistis slid her Knight back to capture her Queen. "Very sloppy indeed." In mild frustration, Madoka captured Quistis' Knight with her last remaining Bishop which was, in turn, captured by Quistis' Bishop. Madoka moved one pawn up one rank, which another Pawn captured. Sliding her last remaining Rook two squares away from the King, Quistis' Queen slid down to capture it. "If I'm not mistaken... Check Mate?" Madoka nodded and stood from their game. "I think you should get some sleep. Think on it." Madoka nodded at this.

"Thanks for the game, Quistis. Even if you are better at it then I am."

"This game is older then I am, Madoka. I've been playing for a very long time." She paused as she looked over the board. "It's a game of sacrifices, you know." She continued, Madoka pausing. "Sometimes, the key to winning is knowing which of your Kings... are really pawns." Madoka swallowed hard, unable to truly grasp the nature of Quistis' words. "Knowing which needs to die to get-"

"No one's dying, Quistis. Trust me." She walked out of Quistis' office with a gait in her step, as if what Quistis had said unnerved her.

"I trust you... Madoka. But I do not believe you." The woman in white spoke to no one as she packed up the chess set.

'Mech Bay 18

"Quistis has always been a little out in left field, Madoka, don't let her get to you." Jake mused, wiping a smudge of grease off his face as he peeked his head from the inside of his 'Mech's Left Arm. "I mean, girl's got creep in spades, and I've never seen a girl keep her face that straight who didn't have pointy ears."

"Pointy ears?" Madoka asks with a pique in her eyebrow. Jake answers this with a blink.

"Yea. Pointy ears. Vulcans? Star Trek? Do you even watch television, Madoka?"

"Not... if I can avoid it, no." Jake shakes his head and brushes her comment away.

"Either or, I wouldn't let anything she said bother you. She does good work, which is the only reason we keep her around, right?" Madoka, who was sitting on one of the support frames of a scaffold, her legs swinging freely beneath her, only nodded. "How'd your chat with Homura go? I take it she was dismissive again?"

"Mm. It didn't end well. She finished it by screaming I 'didn't understand her' and running off, tears following suit. I think I finally have to suspend her. She's not combat fit in this state, and I'm afraid she might... turn her guns on the kid, or something." She ran a hand through her cotton-candy colored hair. "And our newest contract... it calls for five active 'Mechs..."

"I'll go with you." Jake answered quickly.

"I can't ask you to do that, Jake. You've got your own duties to attend to, it's bad enough I have to rely on you as much as I do..."

"Nonsense." The man responded, moving to the edge of the scaffold as Madoka spoke. "You're my closest and best friend, Kaname. Everyone else in Ultanos takes second fiddle to you, alright?" She chanced a look at him and smiled, a blush forming on her cheeks.

"Thanks..." Leaning forward a bit, he gave her a little kiss on the cheek.

"Anything for you." Pulling away, he laughed a little. "Uh oh, got some grease on you..." Reaching a hand out, he moved to wipe it away.

"H-Hey! Don't do that you'll-"

"Oops.. yea, I... I made it worse..." The small grease smudge was now a great big smear across most of her forehead. Madoka laughed as he blinked dumbfoundedly at it.

"I'm sure that'll come out in the shower." Madoka smiled, giving him a hug. "You try to catch some sleep tonight, alright? I'll see you in the morning."

"Yep." The man answered, slinking back behind the armor panel, into the 'Mech. "You too."

"No promises."

-The Next Morning-

You're awoken the next morning by a knock on the door. "Kid, come on, get up. We gotta high-tail it to the _Mitakihara_ on the double. Madoka's got another contract for us." Through your sleep-adled mind, you manage to make out the voice as Kyouko, slowly getting to your feet and rubbing the sleep from your eyes.

Having dressed as quickly as you could muster, you follow Kyouko out to the docking bay where the _Mitakihara_ is being outfitted, a heavier Vindicator 'Mech being loaded right behind Mami's Hollander, the _Tiro Finale_. As you and Kyouko find where Madoka and the others are, Kyouko pushes you gently in front of her, Kyouko slipping next to Sayaka. "Ah, there you are. Good morning, sorry about the rude awakening, but we've got another contract, this time on Solaris VI. The Lyran Alliance has a job for us, and they're paying out the nose to get it done."

"Better pay our fuel cost. The Solaris system is six jumps away." Sayaka muttered, crossing her arms.

"The Alliance is paying eleven and a half _million_ C-Bills for the completion of this contract, and are willing to pay for any and all ammunition and fuel costs to get us there and back. They've even sent us a JumpShip to expedite that." You think you see Sayaka and Kyouko fist-bump at the mention of paid ammunition expenses. Madoka pauses as she looks at all of you. "There's a catch."

"There's always a catch." Comes Mami's reserved response.

"The contract calls for five full members of a Mercenary Company... no halfsies." You swallow your stomach.

"How's that a problem. Last I counted, there were five of us." Kyouko muses. "No offense, kid." She drones to you as an after thought.

"Here's where the problem comes in..." Madoka turns to Homura and inhales, holding it for a time. "Akemi-san... in light of your uncooperative behavior, and your general unwillingness to be a team player, I'm forced to put you under suspension."

"_What?!_" The words flow out of her mouth like poison from a cobra's.

"I've tried to talk to you about your issues, and you've pushed me away. Until you're willing to talk to me, you're not going with us. You'll be staying here."

"You... you can't do this to me, Madoka!"

"I'm sorry, Akemi-san. It's been done." Homura closed the distance between the two in record time.

"Madoka... please, reconsider... if you need five in your unit, and you're suspending me, then there's only one person who you'd be filling my spot with, and I-"

"What, Homura? Do you want to vent all this shit here and now? Because we can. What the hell kind of problem do you have with her?" Homura froze at this, her mouth hung open fighting for the right words. "Well? Come on."

"If you bring her into this unit, you will die." She speaks almost lower then anyone can hear. Madoka seems dumbfounded for a moment, but only smiles, rubbing Homura's head.

"Akemi-san... you're a good friend to me, and I value your opinion... but really? I think I'd be more likely to die _without_ her in the unit. My mind's made up, she's coming." You see Homura's hands tighten into fists of rage at this, though she nods and backs away.

"Very well... Madoka. You're the boss." She turns on her heel and walks away, her hair waving behind her.

"In the meantime, follow me." Madoka collects everyone, yourself included, and leads you towards the _Mitakihara_. "Alright... I didn't want to do this, because it does devalue Akemi-san's opinion but..." Madoka turns back to everyone assembled. "I'm calling another vote to let the kid into the Unit fully." You see everyone's hand shoot up. "Well, that covers it." She takes your hand and shakes it. "Welcome to the Magi Mercenary Unit. Once we clear this mission, I'll need you to speak to Quistis. She has something for you." You nod to her, relieved that you'll finally be able to figure out what everyone's been neglecting to tell you for the past week now... but that'll have to come after a six week flight.

-September 3rd, 3059-

The Lyran Alliance JumpShip _Armarad_ exits FTL drive over the planet Solaris VI after a long flight from Outreach. "Alright everyone, get suited up." You're in the 'Mech Bay when the _Armarad_ exits FTL for the last time, prepping the Vindicator (which you discovered to be your new 'Mech) for combat. It's Madoka who tells you it's time to prepare, the girl still wearing her strange, frilly pink neural suit around the _Mitakihara_ (you're still not exactly sure how that could be qualified as a neural suit, but she wears it in her 'Mech so... what else can it be?) as she claps to get the attention of everyone in the 'Mech Bay, which happens to be you, Mami and Sayaka. Dropping the clipboard you were looking at, you climb down the ladder and onto the 'Mech Bay floor, walking near Madoka as she continues. "Gather 'round for briefing." She's kept the details of the contract quiet since leaving Outreach, and you're starting to get a little irate at her for it. From seemingly nowhere, Kyouko materializes at the far door and slides down the stair railing, flinging herself off at the end and sprinting over to hear the briefing as well.

"Good, everyone's here. Today, we've got a reconnaissance mission, as well as a Destroy-At-Our-Leisure mission. They also happen to be one in the same. Three months ago, a Lyran Alliance 'Mech Detachment walked out to our mission zone on patrol and came under fire by an unknown 'Mech guarding an unknown facility. Our job is to recon the facility and destroy it if we deem it necessary. If they fire upon us, we are allowed to defend ourselves if needed." Your hand goes up. "One moment kid, I'll take your question when I'm done." You drop your hand. "Now, the last transmission from the Lyran 'Mech squad said that the facility was small, five buildings and an airstrip, guarded by only one 'Mech, so it shouldn't be too hard." She nods to you now. "Sorry kid, go ahead now." You ask her how a single 'Mech could take out an entire detachment of military 'Mechs. "A very good question, one I don't have an answer to. Maybe they got sloppy, maybe there's more to this then we know. Needless to say, the Lyrans aren't willing to commit more men, and in their train of thought bodies, to this installation, so they've called on us." Your hand goes up again as she nods for you to continue. You ask her how, if the military 'Mechs failed, how Mercenaries are supposed to succeed.

"Suffice to say kid, there's a reason for everything. The Magi Mercenary Unit is different from other Mercenary Companies in a menagerie of ways. We have our methods of doing everything. Now, here's what's going to happen. We're going to be splitting up into three groups. Group one, which will be Kyouko and Sayaka, will patrol the area around our mission zone, just to be sure there are no extra surprises. I was told of a target of interest seven and a half clicks away by a liasion I have on Solaris VI, and I'm going to go check it out. Mami, I want you and the kid to go after the facility directly."

"Madoka, if I may, wouldn't it be wise to assign... more experienced 'MechWarriors to the base recon and assault? I'm not questioning her piloting skills, it's just things could get... dicey."

"If things get 'dicey', Mami, do what you do best. This is a gloves-off operation, ladies. Which means smoke 'em if you got 'em."

"Oh. Good then." Mami seemed to smile at this. You're not sure what she meant by 'gloves-off', but something about it rings strange. Mami's hand goes to your shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll be fine with me." You tell her you're not worried about your own safety, but the safety of Madoka, who seems to like to go off alone all the time. "Madoka works best alone. She finds she worries more if she's got to watch out for someone else. Don't you worry about her, kid, just watch your own back, and mine, and we'll be out of here before dinner." You nod and start towards your 'Mech. Climbing into the cockpit of the Vindicator you power it up, the computer chiming in with it's usual start up check list of what's online. Looking around, you check every aspect of the 'Mech's cockpit, just to see if anything's left. Reaching under your seat, your hands find the ejection lever, thankfully still in tact and hopefully operational. Just in case. Your central MFD clicks on to show Madoka's cheery face adjusting a microphone headset on her head.

"This is Goddess, everyone check in."

"Champion reporting in." Sayaka answers.

"Crimson Fury here ready to lay down the pain." Comes Kyouko's response.

"Big Sister here. Green down the board, ready to go." Mami chimes in, her sweet voice different from the other's more abrasive, aggressive words. You confirm that you're ready to go as well.

"Excellent. You all have your objectives, so when the _Mitakihara_ touches down, I expect you to fulfill them to the best of your abilities. Oh, and kid. If things get too dicey for you, hang back and let Mami take care of things." Toggling your weapons display, heat and a few other combat displays off from your HUD, you tell her that if not for you, Mami would have bitten it last mission.

"Oh, that's an overstatement, I had everything under control." Mami responds with a gentle smile. Nonetheless, Madoka nods to your statement as the _Mitakihara_ jerks, the sound of four fusion engines cooling proceeding the large metal ramp dropping, allowing everyone off.

Goddess is first, her pink Catapult bounding out of it's berth and into the dying light of Solaris VI's atmosphere, she is followed by the blue Cauldron Borne of Sayaka's, and the red Grim Reaper of Kyouko's. You follow Kyouko out of your own berth as Mami files in behind you. Madoka turns left almost instantly and begins heading south as Sayaka and Kyouko turn right and begin heading north on their patrol. You and Mami start heading slightly west north west towards your own nav points. It's a ten kilometer trip, so you decide to pass the time.

"Hmm?" Mami answers as you address her. You ask, now that you're a full member, what membership entails. She hesitates for a moment before finally speaking. "I'm not really supposed to tell you, as Madoka might get mad but... it's going to happen anyway, so I'll tell you. Each member of the Magi Mercenary Unit is special; very special. I don't just mean that we're a family, or that we watch over each other, we do, but that's not what I mean. Do you remember what Madoka told you? About Magic exisiting?" You nod to his. "Well... each of us had to-" She's cut off by a beep on her radar. You're still nine clicks away, so you can't imagine what it's detecting.

"_Mitakihara_ to Tomoe. Come in." An unfamiliar female voice, probably Hitomi, the _Mitakihara's _pilot, speaks.

"This is Mami. Go ahead, _Mitakihara_." Mami answers.

"I've been doing some preliminary scans of the facility you're going to be looking at... and judging by the heat signatures and smoke coming from one of the buildings, I'd say it's a refinery of some kind."

"Refining plant? That doesn't make any sense. Solaris is a gaming system, not a manufacturing system..."

"True, but Solaris VI is a planet rich in a lot of minerals, most of which are used to make BattleMechs." Mami seems to go quiet.

"I'm not sure what it means, but this unsettles me." Eight kilometers. "Keep scanning, Hitomi. The kid and I'll send back whatever information we find." Mami shakes her head. "I'm sorry to cut this short, kid, but I need to think. I'll tell you more when we're on our way back." You mentally swear at all this situational convenience, keeping you from the answers you want, but you nod to her nonetheless.

You slowly close on your destination, finally the facility comes into view, just on the tail end of a large, dense forest. "There it is..." Mami muses, coming to a stop. "Smoke stacks, chemical smelter... yea, that's a refinery alright. Let's get closer." You've been moving the whole time, coming within eight hundred meters of the facility. "That's strange... we're well within radar range by now, and not a single contact... where are the defenders?" You shake your head, uncertain how to answer. "Maybe it's their tea time..." Suddenly, something pings on your radar. It's a ghost at first, not a certain signature, but something's there. You tell Mami you picked up a ghost, which unnerves her. "Radar ghosts are bad... that means whatever it is is too small to be detected... or it's got a jammer..." You turn your 'Mech to face the direction of the ghost, only to spy a 'Mech coming towards you full tilt. You call to Mami to be on alert just as a barrage of laser fire peppers your 'Mech. Mami manages to get out of the way of the shots coming for her, but you take most of them to your torso. Your armor doesn't react much to the hit, but you can hear a few armor panels come flying off.

"Freebirth 'MechWarriors. You are trespassing on Clan Barrier Witch territory. I, Gertrud of Clan Barrier Witch, order you off our ancestral lands, or you will be destroyed."

"Clan Barrier Witch?" Mami pales as do you.

"Yes. Turn and leave now, or I will be forced to destroy you."

"Gertrud, you are neck-deep in Lyran Alliance space. What right do you have to claim Solaris VI as your ancest-"

"Impudent Freebirth! Solaris VI does not belong to the Lyran Alliance! It is one of the Promised Ten, promised to us by our founder! You do not belong here." You scan the target 'Mech, which turns out to be an Uller, and chuckle at her loadout. Three ER Small Pulse Lasers. But what disturbs you most is you can't seem to get a lock on her. You decide to take the reins from Mami at this point, telling the 'MechWarrior that you have orders to kill on sight, and you're not afraid to follow them. "HA! Try to kill me and fail, as did those before you. Solaris VI does not belong to you."

"Well, I think the opening spray of laser fire judged her as being hostile, yes?" Mami chimes to you. "And we were told to attack if attacked so..." A PPC blast streaks towards the Uller, the 'Mech taking the hit surprisingly well, the blast slamming into the ground to it's side. "Huh?"

"Fools. You cannot harm me. I am protected by the Goddess!" You scan her 'Mech once again, and find her armor comprised of mirrors. Mirrored armor? You tell Mami this.

"Mirrored armor? Well, shit that puts me right out." You line up and dumbfire some SRMS at her, the missiles intercepted by an AMS. "Shit, an Anti-Missile System. This is just great, she's got us..." Missiles and energy weapons are useless.

"You have assaulted a member of Clan Barrier Witch, and will die for it!" Her 'Mech opens up in a surprisingly heavy volley of small laser fire, peppering your 'Mech mercilessly. Your eyes dart to your weapon display. An LBX AutoCannon... Cycling to the AutoCannon, you open your comms once more, asking her how much bad luck you'd get if you broke her mirrors. "I doubt you could." You bark back that she better think twice, then unload with a stream of LBX AutoCannon fire, the shells striking the Uller's armor, sending chunks of glass flying in all directions.

"Way to go, kid! Keep hammering her!" Mami lines up for a second shot, the end of her gun lighting up in a brilliant blue hue. "Time to end this!" Another cluster-fuck of PPC blasts streaks towards the Uller, the damaged mirrors doing nothing to reflect the blast, shattering the 'Mech in half.

"G-gah!" Gertrud growls as sparks fly in her cockpit. "You – I will not forget this!" Damaged beyond repair, you watch as the top of the Uller opens into a small pod, the pilot ejecting. As the Uller falls face-first, it erupts into a brilliant display of flame, smoke and flaming debris forming the shape of a beautiful butterfly through the remains.

"Scratch one. Now on to the base." Mami turns to the base and begins to fire PPC blasts into it. It takes her about ten minutes to finish off leveling each structure in turn, and the pair of you start back to base. "Damn glad you had that AutoCannon. Without it, we'd have been added to her kill count." You shake the comment off, not liking that train of thought one bit. You tentatively ask her if you should tell Madoka about this 'Clan Barrier Witch' thing now.

"I don't think we have a choice now, kid. Snap a few pictures of the image on the side of the smelter before you flash it. She'll need proof." You zoom in your cockpit's view and do as asked, snapping a good few pictures of the large image on the side of the smelter, a black orb with a lattice work of beautiful silver inlay around it, a point coming off one corner as a florette design comes off the opposite corner. You and Mami lay into the base, PPC, AutoCannon and laser fire puncturing large holes in the armor, eventually the main buildings erupt into a fireball of nuclear fire.

"Well, that's that. Let's head on back to the _Mitakihara_ for debriefing." Mami seems happy as you start your walk back to the Dropship.

"Crimson Fury to Big Sister! Shit, you've got hostiles incoming! One mad-as-fuck Vulture coming your way! It's hard to miss. It looks like a walking candy bar." You blink at this, turning to Mami.

"Think you've got one more in you, kid?" Nodding, you turn your 'Mech to face the direction Kyouko feeds you, seeing something appear on your radar.

"So. Someone finally shuts that loud-mouth Gertrud up! Credit where due, girlies, I did not think anyone had it in them! But now I'm afraid I'm going to have to kill you!" A face appears in your MFD, her eyes swirl with a strange pink, blue and white hue. Whatever is causing her strange eye coloration, it's NOT normal. She grins a toothy grin, her teeth gritted as the Vulture charges. An LRM streaks from the left missle rack and slams into Mami's shoulder, the cannon on her 'Mech exploding.

"Gah!" She cries over her radio, the din of her computer running off every system that's gone. "She's... she's taken everything out! Retreat!" Mami continues. You bark at her to make a break for the _Mitakihara_ as you draw her fire. "No! I can't do that!" You continue, shouting that in her current state she'll only get in the way. You watch her fight with further protest before she sighs and nods. "Don't die. Do you hear me, kid? Don't you dare die on me!"

"She is no threat to me." The unknown pilot continues. "And neither are you, girl." You fire the last few remaining AutoCannon shells at her, a few slamming into her torso while the rest go wide. "I do hope you have got more then that." You grit your own teeth in frustration, thinking exactly how bad of an idea this was. Another LRM from the Vulture streaks your way, and you just manage to turn your torso enough to be grazed by three or four of the twenty missiles. Recentering your torso, she opens up with an unusually powerful Large Laser, the glowing-hot blue beam slices effortlessly through your torso, severing your arm.

"Critical Hit: Shoulder Actuator." Your computer chimes in after an alarm. Stopping within reach of your 'Mech, the pilot comes back over your radio.

"Face it kid. You have met a better pilot this day." Muttering a prayer to yourself, you have another moment of clarity.

"The hell I have." You respond, reaching out and, with your still-functional arm, grapple the Vulture in the gap between it's right torso and center torso, jamming your 'Mech's hand in the gap, stopping her from moving.

"What? What are you doing?" You flick switch after switch on your console, your MFD lighting up with the words 'Explosion Imminent' as your 'Mech's core temperature rises. Reaching down, you take hold of the eject bar. "Stravag! You'll kill us both!" Without another word, the top of the Vulture opens up in an escape pod, the smoke rising in the air. You try to do the same, but an alarm sounds.

"Automatic Ejection System: Offline. Please preform a Manual Ejection." Fuck manual ejections! Fingers flying across the console, you prep the cockpit bolts to blow. Ten seconds until you're a bad memory. Five.. three...

_PACHANG!_ The pod rockets out of the top of you Vindicator a few precious seconds too late. As the 'Mech erupts into a nuclear explosion, you're caught in the tail end. Your head slams hard into the side of the pod, causing you to black out.

Some Unknown Amount of Time Later...

"...un. Fighting you was fun. Killing you would have been too good for you. No... I'm glad you survived, little morsel. I shall take pleasure in eating you." You manage to come to, the swirly-eyed visage of the strange pilot looking you over like a kid looks over a chocolate bar. "Oooh, you are awake finally. Good. It would be no fun if I ate you when you were asleep." Ate?! She... doesn't mean that literally... right?

"Bested Gertrud and nearly bested me. I have to admit, you are formidable for a Freebirth. Resourceful and cunning. I would love to have you as a member of our family but... alas, I cannot. I believe I shall have to make do with simply adding your strength to my own." You can't move, the throbbing in your head and the pain in your legs stopping you from even thinking. Straddling you, the pilot licks her lips, her sharp teeth the only thing you can see. Opening her mouth wide, she clamps down on your shoulder, a spike of pain rocketing throughout your body, causing a scream to leave your lips. Shit! She DID mean that literally! Mustering all your strength, you put both arms on her shoulders and push, trying to get her off of you. Gods damn this headache... After a second spike of pain, this one considerably more powerful then the last, the strange pilot comes up and glares at you, blood staining her teeth and mouth.

"Don't fight it, cutie. It'll only make it hurt more..." You udder a silent plea to anyone who could hear you. Opening her mouth once more, she's interrupted by a streak of yellow light slicing through her body. "Gyaah!" She shrieks, the force of the blast knocking her off of you. "What is this?!"

"Get the FUCK off of her you bitch!" You hear a familiar voice call. The strange cannibal hisses at the voice, gets to her feet, and runs. The sound of heels on grass coming closer is all you have to focus on as your vision swims and fades randomly. "Can you hear me!? Oh gods..." You make out a face, in your dillusion. Mami. She looks left, from where she came from, and shrieks one word before you black out. "Quistis!"

"...ook at me." A voice pulls you from your dying dillusion, your head rolling about as your eyes try desperately to focus on something, fucking anything. "Look at me..." The voice continues. You manage to make out red eyes and white hair... You choke out a name who you think it might be, the figure giving a short smile. "At least you know who it is. Listen to me very carefully, are you listening?" You give a lazy nod. "Repeat after me. 'Quistis Black, I wish you to save my life.'" You mumble something incoherently in response, the woman shaking her head. "Not good enough. Say it. 'Quistis Black, I wish you to save my life.'" Through great trial and tribulation, you manage to force these words from your mouth, Quistis nodding. "Good. Now rest." A hand covers your eyes and you black out.


End file.
